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Kip,  William  Ingrahain,  1811- 

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The  double  witness  of  the 


Digitized  by  tine  Internet  Archive 

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Princeton  Tiieological  Seminary  Library 


littp://www.archive.org/details/doublewitnessOOkipw 


THE 


Double  Witness  of  The  Chdbch 


BY  THE 


/ 

RT.  REV.  WM.  INGRAHAM  KIP  D.D.  LLD. 


BISHOP  OF  CALIFORNIA 


"  It  may  be  as  well,  then,  old  and  trite  as  the  subject  is,  to  say  a  few  words  on 
some  of  those  natures  of  our  Church,  which  bear  at  once  a  double  witness  against 
Rome  on  the  one  hand,  and  mere  Protestant  congregations  on  the  other." — Rev.  F, 
W.  Fabbr. 


TWENTY-SECOND    EDITION 

REVISED  BY  THE  AUTHOR 


NEW  YORK 

E.  P.  DUTTON  AND   COMPANY 
713  Broadway 
1878 


One  only  way  to  life  ; 
One  Faith,  delivered  once  for  all  ; 
One  holy  Band,  endow'd  with  Heaven's  high  call : 

One  earnest,  endless  strife  ; — 
This  is  the  ChQrch  th'  Eternal  fram'd  of  old. 

Smooth  open  ways,  good  store  : 
A  creed  for  every  clime  and  age. 
By  Mammon's  touch  new  moulded  o'er  and  o'er; 

No  Cross,  no  war  to  wage  ; 
This  is  the  Church  our  earth-dimmed  eyes  behold. 

But  ways  must  have  an  end. 
Creeds  undergo  the  trial  flame, 
Nor  with  th'  impure  the  saints  forever  blend, 

Heaven's  glory  with  our  shame  : 
Think  on  that  home,  and  choose  'twixt  soft  and  bold. 

Lyra  Apostolica, 


OSPHAKS'  PRESS — CHURCH  CHARITY  FOUNDATION,  BR00ia.YM,  N.  Y. 


PREFACE. 


The  circumstances  under  which  this  Volume  was 
written,  are  briefly  these.  The  last  winter,  it  is  well 
known,  was  a  season  of  strange  excitement  among 
the  different  denominations  throughout  our  land. 
At  such  a  time — as  the  best  safeguard  against  this 
injurious  influence — the  writer  thought  it  well  to  de- 
liver to  the  people  of  his  charge,  a  course  of  Lectures, 
plainly  setting  forth  the  distinctive  principles  of  the 
Church.  They  were  continued  through  ten  successive 
Sunday  evenings  ;  and  he  had  reason  to  believe  that 
the  effect  produced  was  beneficial. 

The  Lectures  were  originally  prepared  without  the 
most  distant  idea  of  publication.  Having,  however, 
been  requested  by  the  vestry,  as  well  as  by  others  in 
whose  judgment  he  is  accustomed  to  rely,  to  furnish 
the  series  for  the  press,  the  writer  did  not  feel  at 
liberty  to  decline.  He  has,  therefore,  availed  him- 
self of  what  hours  of  leisure  he  could  find  amidst  the 
engrossing  cares  of  Parish  duty,  to  expand  some  parts 
of  the  course  and  to  add  the  necessary  references. 
The  result  of  his  attempt  is  seen  in  this  volume. 

He  believes  that  this  work  will  be  found  to  differ 
somewhat  in  its  plan,   from  most   of  those  on  the 


4  PREFACE. 

claims  of  our  Church,  which  are  intended  for  popular 
reading.  They  are  generally  written  with  reference 
merely  to  the  Protestant  denominations  around  us. 
The  public  mind,  however,  has  lately  taken  a  new 
direction,  and  the  doctrines  of  the  Church  of  Rome 
have  again  become  a  subject  of  discussion.  The 
writer  has  therefore  endeavored  to  draw  the  line  be- 
tween these  two  extremes — showing  that  the  Church 
bears  her  DOUBLE  WITNESS  against  them  both — and 
points  out  a  middle  path  as  the  one  of  truth  and 
safety.  And  the  principle  by  which  he  has  been 
guided  in  all  cases,  is  that  laid  down  by  Tertullian, 
"  Whatever  is  first,  is  true  ;  whatever  is  more  recent, 
is  spurious."* 

To  account  for  the  tone  in  which  some  parts  are 
written — for  instance,  the  close  of  the  Lecture  on 
"  The  moral  training  of  the  Church  " — he  must  ask 
the  reader  to  bear  in  mind,  the  high  state  of  religious 
excitement  which  was  at  that  time  prevailing  on 
every  side,  and  the  strange  excesses  to  which  it 
naturally  gave  birth.  These  passages  have  been 
suffered  to  remain,  because  another  winter  may  again 
produce  the  same  delusions  in  the  denominations 
around  us.  On  the  solemn  subject  of  his  religious 
interests,  man  seems  determined  not  to  profit  by  the 
experience  of  the  past,  but  year  after  year  courts  the 
fever,  forgetful  of  the  chill  by  which  it  is  invariably 
followed. 

The  prevalence  in  this  country  of  a  peculiar  form 
of  error,  also  occasioned  the  delivery  of  a  separate 

"  Perseque  adversus  universas  hcereses  jam  hinc  praejudicatum  sit  id 
esse  verum,  quodcunque  primum  ;  id  esse  adultemm  quodcunque 
posterius." — Terttill.  adv.  Frax.,  §  ii.  Oper.p.  405. 


PREFACE.  5 

Lecture,  devoted  to  an  exposition  of  "  The  Church's 
View  of  Baptism."  In  the  fourth  century,  Pelagius, 
after  travelling  over  the  greater  part  of  Christendom, 
could  record  as  the  result  of  his  observations  that 
"  he  had  never  heard  even  any  impious  heretic,  who 
asserted  that  infants  are  not  to  be  baptized."  Such, 
however,  is  unfortunately  not  the  case  in  our  day. 
A  numerous  body  of  those  **  who  profess  and  call 
themselves  Christians,"  have  fallen  into  this  heresy, 
and  it  has  become  necessary  to  show  plainly,  how  un- 
tenable are  their  doctrines  when  tested  by  Scripture 
and  the  voice  of  Catholic  antiquity. 

The  writer  cannot  expect,  in  bringing  forward  so 
many  disputed  points,  but  that  his  readers  will  take 
exception  to  some  of  his  statements.  He  trusts, 
however,  that  the  views  advanced  will  be  found  to  be 
in  accordance  with  the  teaching  of  the  great  body  of 
divines  of  the  Church  of  England.  In  the  old  path 
which  they  marked  out,  we  should  all  endeavor  to 
walk.  And  the  caution  at  tliis  time  is  particularly 
necessary.  The  revival  of  an  attention  to  Church 
principles  which  has  lately  taken  place,  will  in  some 
cases  drive  the  unstable  and  the  imaginative  to  an 
extreme  bordering  on  Romanism.  Tliis  danger, 
therefore,  we  must  shun,  seeking  with  care  the  well 
defined  line  which  separates  Catholic  truths  from 
Roman  fallacies.  And  if  these  Lectures  shall  aid  any 
inquirer  in  forming  his  opinions,  and  avoiding  the 
errors  by  which  we  are  surrounded,  the  writer  will 
feel  tliat  his  labor  has  not  been  in  vain. 

Festival  of  St.  James,  1843. 


PREFACE  TO  THE  TWENTY-SECOND  EDI- 
TION. 

In  revising  this  Edition  for  the  press,  the  author 
would  express  his  thankfulness  for  the  many  assur- 
ances he  has  received  that  this  work  has  proved 
useful  in  spreading  the  knowledge  of  the  Apostolic 
Church.  Written  during  a  time  of  excitement,  and 
to  meet  a  peculiar  crisis  in  the  state  of  religion  around, 
he  had  no  idea  that  at  the  end  of  more  than  thirty- 
four  years  it  would  be  found  with  an  increasing 
circulation.  To  the  kindness  of  his  brethren  in  the 
ministry  much  of  this  is  owing ;  and  now,  the  author 
may  truly  say,  that  with  the  added  study  of  years 
and  the  wider  experience  he  has  gained  from  himself 
witnessing  the  workings  of  mere  Protestantism  in 
Germany  and  Romanism  in  Italy,  he  sees  no  necessity 
for  changing  any  views  which  he  formerly  expressed 
in  these  pages.  The  last  quarter  of  a  century  has 
been  a  time  of  trial  to  die  Church,  when  her  princi- 
ples were  fully  tested  both  in  this  country  and  in 
that  from  which  she  came,  yet  to  his  mind  the  result 
has  proved  her  Catholic  character,  and  increased  his 
confidence  in  the  truths  he  has  endeavored  to  unfold 
in  this  volume.  Once  more  then  he  sends  it  forth  on 
its  way,  with  the  earnest  prayer  that  it  may  not  only 
strengthen  the  Churchman  in  his  faith,  but  also  prove 
useful  to  some  among  those  who  in  an  age  of  doubt 
and  skepticism,  are  "  sounding  on  their  dim  and 
perilous  way." 

San  Francisco,  October,  1877. 


CONTENTS. 


j_  Page 

Introductory.     Necessity  for  knowing  the  Reasons  why  we  are 

Churchmen         .--.---  9 

II. 

Episcopacy  proved  from  Scripture  -----        39 

III. 
Episcopacy  proved  from  History  77 

IV. 

Antiquity  of  Forms  of  Prayer       - "7 

V. 

History  of  our  Liturgy         -         - 147 

VI. 
The  Church's  View  of  Infant  Baptism 190 

VII. 
The  Moral  Traming  of  the  Church 226 

VIII. 
Popular  Objections  against  the  Church 252 

IX. 

The  Church  in  all  ages  the  Keeper  of  the  Truth        -         -         -      289 

X. 

Conclusion.     The  True,  Catholic  Churchman  -         -         -      3^3 


Man  is  a  creature  of  extremes.  The  middle  path  is  generally  the 
wise  path,  but  there  are  few  wise  enough  to  find  it.  Because  Papists 
have  made  too  much  of  some  things,  Protestants  have  made  too  little 
of  them.  The  Papists  treat  man  as  all  sense  :  and,  therefore,  some 
Protestants  would  treat  him  as  all  spirit.  Because  one  party  has 
exalted  the  Virgin  Mary  to  a  Divinity,  the  other  can  scarcely  think  of 
that  "most  highly  favored  among  women"  with  common  respect. 
The  Papist  puts  the  Apocrypha  into  his  Canon  ;  the  Protestant  will 
scarcely  regard  it  as  an  ancient  record.  The  Popish  Heresy,  human 
merit  in  justification,  drove  Luther  on  the  other  side  into  the  most 
unwarrantable  and  unscriptural  statements  of  that  doctrine.  The 
Papists  consider  Grace  as  inseparable  from  the  participation  of  the 
Sacraments — the  Protestants  too  often  lose  sight  of  them  as  instituted 
means  of  conveying  Grace. 

Cecils  Remains. 


THSOLGGXGiL 


I. 


NECESSITY  FOR  KNOWING  THE  REASONS  WHY  WE 
AHE  CHURCHMEN. 


Mother !  I  am  sometimes  told, 
By  the  wanderers  in  the  dark, 

Fleeing  from  thine  ancient  fold, 
I  must  seek  some  newer  ark. 


Rather  those  who  turn  away 

Let  me  seek  with  love  to  win, 
Till  Christ's  scattered  sheep  astray 

To  thy  fold  are  gathered  in. 

J?ev.  B.  D.    Wins  low,  «  To  the  Church: 

In  all  the  varied  history  of  the  Church,  the  most 
beautiful  picture  is  that  which  is  presented  by  the 
unity  of  her  early  days.  The  watchwords  of  a  party 
were  then  unheard  over  the  earth.  No  discordant 
tones  arose,  to  break  the  delightful  harmony  which 
prevailed.  No  warring  sects  distracted  the  attention 
of  the  inquirer  after  tlie  Truth,  or  pointed  to  an 
hundred  different  paths  in  which  he  was  invited  to 
walk.  With  one  voice  all  declared  themselves  heirs 
of  the  same  hopes,  and  alike  numbered  with  the  faith- 
ful. "By  the  operation  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  all 
Christians  were  so  joined  together,  in  unity  of  spirit, 
and  in  the  bond  of  peace,  that  with  one  heart  they 


lO  NECESSITY  FOR    KNOWING    THE 

desired  the  prosperity  of  the  Holy  Apostolic  Church, 
and  with  one  mouth  professed  the  faith  once  delivered 
to  the  saints."* 

The  Church  then  stood  before  our  race,  the  sole 
messenger  of  glad  tidings  to  the  world — the  only  city 
of  refuge,  beyond  whose  shelter  there  was  no  salva- 
tion for  mankind.  On  widely  distant  shores,  and  in 
many  a  strange  tongue,  the  voice  of  prayer  was 
uplifted,  yet  always  its  spirit  was  the  same.  "  From 
the  rising  of  the  sun  even  unto  the  going  down  of 
the  same," — everywhere  over  the  wide  earth — there 
was  "one  Lord,  one  faith,  one  baptism."  All  "con- 
tinued steadfastly  in  the  Apostles'  doctrine  and  fellow- 
ship, and  in  breaking  of  bread,  and  in  prayers." 
There  was,  therefore,  nothing  else  in  this  world  to 
which  the  penitent  could  turn,  but  the  one  Catholic, 
Apostolic  Church. 

Centuries  have  gone  by  since  these  bright  days  of 
the  Church  passed  away ;  yet,  still  the  hope  of  their 
return  sustains  her  children  amid  the  toils  and  self- 
denial  of  the  way.  For  this  their  souls  are  waiting 
"more  than  they  that  watch  for  the  morning."  For 
this  they  labor.  For  this  they  strive  to  make  her 
principles  known  in  the  world — to  reclaim  the  wan- 
derers from  her  fold  —  and  to  convince  them,  that 
there  indeed  they  will  find  rest  for  their  souls.  And 
it  is  in  the  attempt  to  do  my  humble  share  in  this 
work,  and  to  mingle  my  exertions  also  with  that  tide 
of  influence  which  is  put  forth  on  every  side  of  us, 
that  I  have  met  you  this  evening,  to  commence  a 
course  of  lectures  on  the  distinctive  principles  of  the 
Church.     The  field  which  opens  before  us  is  a  wide 

•  From  a  prayer  in  the  office  of  Institution. 


REASONS    WHY    JVE    ARE    CHURCHMEN.  II 

one,  but   the   remarks  which    I    shall  offer,  on    the 
present  occasion,  will  be  merely  introductory. 

You  will  naturally  ask  the  question — why  I  have 
chosen  this  way  to  advance  the  interests  of  our  faith, 
and  aid  the  final  coming  of  the  reign  of  peace  ? 
Why — with  so  many  topics  opening  before  us  on  the 
pages  of  God's  word,  which  ultimately  concern  man's 
eternal  safety — I  pass  them  by,  to  dwell  upon  forms 
of  Church  government  ?  Why — when  the  apostate 
and  the  lost  are  perishing  on  the  right  hand  and  on 
the  left — instead  of  sounding  forth  to  them  the  solemn 
warning,  to  turn  unto  the  Lord  and  live — instead  of 
preaching  that  great  Atonement  which  must  be  their 
only  hope — I  take  up  subjects  which  to  many  would 
appear  only  of  secondary  interest  ? 

In  answer  to  these  inquiries  I  can  only  say,  that  I 
am  fully  aware  of  the  unspeakable  importance  of 
these  themes.  You,  too,  I  trust,  can  bear  me  wit- 
ness, that  when  I  have  stood  before  you,  week  after 
week,  for  nearly  six  years,  in  the  ministrations  of  this 
sanctuary,  it  has  ever  been  my  object  to  lead  you 
through  the  sorrows  of  a  broken  and  contrite  heart, 
to  that  peace  and  joy  which  are  to  be  found  only  at 
the  Cross  of  our  Lord.  It  has  been  my  earnest 
prayer,  that  never  might  I  lose  sight  of  that  maxim 
of  the  Apostle  which  regulated  his  preaching,  and 
which  he  declared  so  explicitly  in  the  words :  "  For 
I  determined  not  to  know  anything  among  you,  save 
Jesus  Christ,  and  him  crucified."  But  every  truth 
which  God  has  revealed  must  be  important,  and 
should  hold  its  proper  place  in  the  instructions  of  the 
pulpit  Under  the  Jewish  law,  no  commands  which 
he  had   given   were   thought   too  inconsiderable   to 


12  NECESSITY  FOR   KNOWING    7 HE 

receive  their  strict  attention.  Even  the  "paying 
tithes  of  mint,  anise,  and  cummin,"  our  Saviour 
declared  they  "  ought  not  to  leave  undone."  Who, 
then,  can  say^  that  the  question,  What  form  of  gov- 
ernment did  our  Lord  prescribe  for  His  Church  ?  is 
one  which  does  not  deserve  our  earnest  investigation  ? 
There  is  indeed  "  a  time  to  speak,"  as  well  as  "  a 
time  to  be  silent  " — a  time  to  warn  the  sinner  that 
he  flee  from  the  wrath  to  come,  or  to  call  the  Chris- 
tian to  press  onward  in  his  course — and  a  time  to 
proclaim  to  those  around  us,  the  rules  of  outward 
order  which  characterize  our  Church.  There  must 
indeed  be  a  symmetry  in  our  teaching.  "  He,"  says 
Bishop  Mcllvaine,  "  is  a  poor  husbandman,  who 
spends  so  much  time  upon  the  tilling  of  the  ground, 
that  his  enclosures  are  forgotten ;  or  who  thinks 
that  because  the  fence  is  not  the  grain,  therefore  it 
may  take  care  of  itself.  So  would  that  be  a  very 
defective  ministry,  and  would  prove  at  last,  should  it 
be  generally  prevalent,  a  ruinous  ministry  to  all 
abiding  fruits  of  righteousness,  which,  for  the  sake  of 
more  attention  to  inward  and  spiritual  religion,  should 
despise  or  neglect  the  careful  maintenance,  in  their 
right  claim  of  reverence  and  obedience,  of  those 
outward  things  of  Church  ordinance  and  order, 
which  are  just  as  necessary  to  the  abiding  of  spiritual 
religion  in  the  world,  as  the  human  body  is  to  the 
abiding  of  the  human  soul."  Neither,  indeed,  are 
these  single  and  isolated  facts,  standing  by  them- 
selves. They  have  their  influence  on  the  whole 
circle  of  our  religious  duties.  And  since  all  truths 
are  linked  together,  tlie  reception  of  any  one  may  be 
the  means  of  pouring  light   into  the   mind,  and   in- 


REASONS    WHY    WE   ARE    CHURCHMEN.  13 

ducing  us  to  go  on  step  by  step,  until  "  the  Truth 
shall  make  us  free."  While,  therefore,  "the  time  is 
short "  in  which  our  warfare  is  to  be  waged,  it  is 
surely  well  for  us  at  once  to  decide,  in  what  arena 
the  conflict  must  be  fought. 

To  this  duty  then  I  am  called,  by  the  very  vows 
which  bound  me  to  the  altar.  Among  the  earliest 
charges  inculcated  upon  the  ministry,  even  by  an 
Apostle,  was  the  duty  of  declaring  to  their  people 
"  all  the  counsel  of  God,"  because  thus  only  could 
they  be  "  pure  from  the  blood  of  all  men."  Yes, 
brethren  !  "  all  the  counsel  of  God  " — not  merely  a 
few  great  and  cardinal  doctrines — those  of  repent- 
ance and  faith — but  everything  which  forms  a  part 
of  our  common  Christianity.  How,  then,  can  he  be 
fulfilling  this  requisition,  who  omits  any  truth  which 
can  exert  an  influence  upon  the  Christian  life  and 
conduct  ?  Would  the  ancient  Jewish  priest  have 
discharged  his  duty  to  the  people,  if,  when  com- 
manded to  instruct  them  in  the  law,  he  had  spent  all 
his  time  in  directing  their  attention  to  that  coming 
Messiah,  who  was  then  revealed  in  prophecy  ?  No, 
his  business  was  to  teach  them  also  the  rites  of  the 
ceremonial  law — to  show  why  they  were  severed 
from  the  surrounding  nations — and  to  recall  the 
history  and  explain  the  object  of  that  splendid 
ritual  with  which  they  worshipped.  And  this  is  the 
wide  duty  of  the  Christian  priest  in  our  day.  He 
must  also  unfold  before  you  the  government  and 
polity  of  that  Church  which  his  Master  founded, 
when,  as  the  earliest  Herald  of  the  faith,  He  preached 
among  the  villages  of  Judea,  and   which   He  then 


14  NECESSITY  FOR    KNOWING    THE 

constituted  to  be  in  all  ages  "  the  pillar  and  ground 
of  the  truth."'^- 

Again — in  our  ordination  service,  the  question  put 
by  the  Bishop  to  one  about  to  be  admitted  to  the 
holy  order  of  Priests  is — "  Will  you  be  ready,  with 
all  faithful  diligence,  to  banish  and  drive  away  from 
the  Church  all  erroneous  and  strange  doctrines  con- 
trary to  God's  word  ?" — to  which  he  replies — "  I 
will,  the  Lord  being  my  helper."  And  the  exhorta- 
tion also  is  given — "  See  that  ye  never  cease  your 
labor,  your  care  and  diligence,  until  ye  have  done  all 
that  lieth  in  you,  according  to  your  bounden  duty, 
to  bring  all  such  as  are  or  shall  be  committed  to 
your  charge,  unto  that  agreement  in  the  faith  and 
knowledge  of  God,  and  that  ripeness  and  perfection 
of  age  in  Christ,  that  there  be  no  place  left  among 
you,  either  for  error  in  religion,  or  for  viciousness 
in  life."  How  then  can  he  be  innocent,  who  beholds 
what  he  regards  as  errors  rife  around  him,  and  yet 
warns  not  the  people  of  his  charge  against  their  influ- 
ence— who  suffers  them  to  live  on  year  after  year, 
attending  the  services  of  the  Church,  yet  liable  to  be 
"  tossed  to  and  fro,  and  carried  about  with  every 
wind  of  doctrine,"  because  they  are  without  any  defi- 
nite knowledge  of  the  reasons  why  they  should  be 
Churchmen  ? 

Such,  then,  are  the  motives  which  have  induced  me 
to  address  you  on  these  subjects.  They  are  points 
which  for  the  last  three  centuries  have  exercised  the 
intellect  and  pens  of  some  of  the  most  gifted  in  each 
generation.     There  is  no  room  therefore  for  any  at- 

*  I  Tim.  iii.  15. 


JiEASONS    WHY    WE    ARE    CHURCHMEN.  1 5 

tempts  at  originality,  but  all  that  we  can  now  do  is  to 
go  forth,  and  reap  here  and  there,  with  what  judg- 
ment we  may,  in  the  wide  fields  which  the  learned 
of  former  days  have  cultivated.  "  Other  men  labor- 
ed, and  we  have  entered  into  their  labors."  In  the 
elucidation,  too,  of  each  single  topic  which  I  can 
bring  before  you  in  the  narrow  compass  of  these  lec- 
tures, volumes  have  been  written.  But  how  few 
comparatively  will  turn  to  the  hoarded  wisdom  of  the 
past — the  works  of  those  who  were  giants  in  the  in- 
tellectual warfare  of  older  days — and  search  for  them- 
selves in  the  rich  mines  which  have  been  thus  be- 
queathed to  us  ?  The  very  magnitude  of  the  mate- 
rials which  are  offered  to  their  view,  causes  them 
often  to  turn  away  in  despair,  while  to  a  simple  state- 
ment of  the  argument  they  will  listen  readily.  Many 
too  need  to-  have  their  attention  first  awakened,  and 
their  interest  excited,  before  they  will  commence  the 
examination.  My  endeavor  therefore  shall  be,  mere- 
ly to  open  this  subject  before  you,  in  the  hope  that 
afterwards,  from  the  hints  and  suggestions  given, 
you  will  feel  inclined  yourselves  to  prosecute  the 
study  of  this  important  argument. 

And  now,  brethren,  a  few  words  with  regard  to 
the  spirit  in  which  I  propose  to  conduct  this  inquiry. 
It  is  with  no  feeling  of  unkindness  or  opposition  to 
those  who  differ  from  us  on  these  topics.  Born  and 
educated  in  a  denomination  which  discards  the  dis- 
tinctive features  of  the  Church,  the  recollections  of 
youth  are  not  easily  forgotten,  nor  the  ties  of  rela- 
tionship which  bind  me  to  those  who  reject,  as  a  cor- 
ruption of  the  dark  ages,  the  claims  of  our  ancient 
Apostolic  ministry,  and  almost  regard  as  heresy  the 


y 


1 6  NECESSITY  FOR    KNOWING    HIE 

way  in  which  we  worship  our  God.  But  if  compell- 
ed from  principle  to  decline  uniting  with  their  com- 
munion, and  to  differ  from  them  on  doctrines  which 
the  Church  holds  to  be  most  important,  I  would  still 
speak  of  them  only  in  the  spirit  of  love.  In  setting 
before  you,  therefore,  most  distinctly  the  points  on 
which  we  are  at  variance,  and  protesting  against  what 
we  believe  to  be  a  departure  from  the  Scriptural 
standard,  it  shall  still  be  done  with  no  other  feeling 
than  that  of  deep  regret  that  thus  the  followers  of  the 
same  Lord  can  disagree.  Remembering,  with  the 
excellent  Hooker,  that  "  there  will  come  a  time,  when 
three  words  uttered  with  charity  and  meekness  shall 
receive  a  far  more  blessed  reward,  than  three  thous- 
and volumes  written  with  disdainful  sharpness  of 
wit,"'-  he  who  now  addresses  you  would  desire  in  this, 
as  in  all  other  things,  not  to  record  a  single  line, 

" which,  dying,  he  would  wish  to  blot." 


In  that  fearful  conflict  which  is  waging  against 
"  the  Prince  of  the  power  of  the  air,  the  spirit  that 
now  worketh  in  the  children  of  disobedience,"  we 
may  hail  with  gladness  of  heart,  the  success  of  any 
who  are  winning  souls  from  sin  to  holiness,  even 
though  they  "  follow  not  with  us."  Though  error 
may  be  mingled  with  the  truth  they  inculcate,  still  if 
they  can  thus  lead  the  lost  and  perishing  to  their  God, 
our  spirits  may  well  be  lifted  up  with  gratitude,  that 
thus  the  faith  is  advanced,  "  if  by  any  means  we  might 
save  some."  When,  therefore,  we  learn  that  through 
the  efforts  of  those  who  disclaim  our  ministry,  new 
triumphs  are  won  to  the  cross    among  the  snows  of 

*  Preface  to  Eccles.  Polity,  Sect.  2. 


REASONS    WHY  IVE  ARE    CHURCHMEN.  1 7 

Greenland,  or  on  "  the  palmy  plains  "  of  Ceylon — 
when  we  read  how  the  Jesuits,  Cavallero  and  Anchieta 
taught  their  creed  among  the  mighty  forests  of  our 
own  Southern  continent,  and  for  the  first  time  the 
wild  tribes  of  Brazil  bowed  to  the  emblem  of  our  com- 
mon Master,  we  thank  God  our  hearts  can  respond 
to  the  announcement  of  their  success,*  and  our  faith  is 
strengthened  as  we  journey  on  amid  the  gloom  and 
trials  of  this  lower  world.  We  can  adopt,  we  trust, 
alike  the  feelings  and  the  language  of  the  Apostle 
and  say, — "  What  then  ?  notwithstanding,  every  way, 
whether  in  pretence  or  in  truth,  Christ  is  preached  ; 
and  I  therein  do  rejoice,  yea,  and  will  rejoice."  Yet 
still,  we  may  be  clearly  sensible  of  the  errors  of  those, 
who  thus  in  a  greater  or  less  degree  have  departed 
from  that  standard  which  our  Lord  left  for  his  follow- 
ers. Let  our  motto  then  be  expressed  in  the  words 
of  an  ancient  writer — "  Unity,  in  things  that  are 
necessary — liberty,  in  things  that  are  unnecessary — 
charity,  in  all  things. "f 

Again — it  shall  be  my  endeavor  to  speak  plainly. 
The  trumpet  should  never  utter  an  uncertain  sound. 
There  is  no  use  on  this  point,   or  on  any   other,  of 

*  "  It  was  a  land  of  priestcraft,  but  the  Priest 
Believed  himself  the  fables  that  he  taught: 
Corrupt  their  forms,  and  yet  those  forms  at  least 
Preserv'd  a  salutary  faith  that  wrought, 
Maugre  the  alloy,  the  saying  end  it  sought. 
Benevolence  had  gain'd  such  empire  there, 
That  even  superstition  had  been  brought 
An  aspect  of  humanity  to  wear, 
And  make  the  weal  of  man  its  first  and  only  care. 

Southey^s  Tale  of  Paraguay,  Cant.  IV.  10. 

f  In   necessariis,  unitas — in  non  necessariis,  libertas — in  omnibus, 
charitas." — Wit  sins  ap  Turretin,  de  Fund.  p.  45. 
2 


1 8  NECESSITY  FOR    KNOWING    THE 

that  smooth  and  equivocal  preaching  which  leaves 
the  hearer  in  doubt  as  to  the  practical  conclusion. 
The  pulpit  is  no  place  from  which  to  utter  dark  say- 
ings, or  to  address  you  in  the  language  of  parables. 
I  shall  endeavor,  therefore,  fully  and  faithfully  to  lay 
before  you  the  distinctive  principles  of  the  Church 
— showing  that  she  is  now,  in  her  form  and  ministry, 
as  founded  by  Christ  and  his  Apostles  eighteen  cen- 
turies ago,  and  that  this  view  is  confirmed  alike  by 
tlie  voice  of  Scripture  and  of  History.  And  if  the 
conclusions  to  which  we  come  should  strike  at  the 
very  foundations  of  the  claims  of  those  who  surround 
us,  we  are  not  responsible  for  the  result.  We  must 
interpret  the  word  of  God  in  accordance  with  the 
light  we  have — deliver  faithfully  the  message  with 
which  He  has  charged  us — and  then  leave  conse- 
quences to  Him.  It  was  not  always  with  pleasant 
minstrelsy  that  the  prophets  of  old  approached  those 
to  whom  they  were  sent.  Often  they  were  charged 
with  a  sterner  message,  as  they  rebuked  their  in- 
fatuated countrymen  for  abandoning  the  Holy  Temple 
at  Jerusalem  and  worshipping  in  groves  and  high 
places  which  their  own  hands  had  made. 

Why  then  should  you  seek  to  under- 
stand  THE   REASONS   FOR  BEINCx   CHURCHMEN? 

The  first  I  shall  mention  is — because  our  Divine 
Master  wJieii  on  earth  certainly  founded  arid  es- 
tablisJied  a  ChnrcJi.  Had  He  not  done  so — had  he 
merely  inculcated  the  general  principles  of  His  faith, 
and  left  each  body  of  believers  to  regulate  their  own 
ecclesiastical  government — the  obligations  resting  on 
us  would  be  widely  different.  Then,  we  might  justly 
consider   every   self-constituted    society,    and  every 


REASONS    WHY    WE    ARE    CHURCHMEN.  1 9 

assembly  professing  itself  to  be  Christian,  as  a  regu- 
lar and  duly  organized  Church  of  Christ.  Then 
every  individual  who  imagined  himself  moved  to 
preach  the  Gospel,  or  who  was  asked  to  do  so  by 
any  number  who  had  chosen  thus  to  unite  together 
as  a  congregation,  would  be  fully  entitled  to  minis- 
terial authority,  and  as  much  qualified  to  administer 
the  sacraments,  as  if  he  had  received  a  direct  com- 
mission from  heaven. 

You  perceive,  then,  that  there  must  have  been 
some  visible  Church  established  by  our  Lord,  and 
some  regularly  constituted  ministry,  or  every  thing 
has  been  left  entirely  unsettled,  subject  to  the  caprices 
of  man.  And  you  will  readily  see,  to  what  fluctua- 
tions and  changes  the  want  of  this  established  sys- 
tem would  necessarily  give  rise.  If  at  any  particular 
time — take  that  of  the  Reformation  in  the  sixteenth 
century  for  example — a  body  of  men,  for  some 
reason  which  seemed  sufficient  to  themselves,  had  a 
right  to  abandon  that  ministry  which  was  derived 
in  uninterrupted  succession  from  the  Apostles,  and 
without  any  new  commission  from  our  Lord,  to 
constitute  another  ministry  of  their  own,  then  any 
individuals  have  at  any  time  a  right  to  do  the  same. 
Either  the  ministry  of  the  Church  must  have  been 
handed  down  from  our  Lord  and  his  apostles,  through 
the  long  line  of  those  who  succeeded  them — and  it 
is  from  this  fact  that  I  stand  before  you  your  autho- 
rized teacher — or  else  there  is  no  law  at  all  on  this 
subject,  and  each  one  who  occupies  these  pews  has 
as  much  right  as  I  have — should  his  fancy  lead  him 
to  do  so— -to  stand  at  this  altar,  and  minister  to  you 


20  NECESSITY  FOR    KNOWING    THE 

in  holy  things.  There  is  therefore  no  middle  ground 
in  this  matter. 

But  our  Lord  did  not,  we  believe,  thus  abandon 
the  precious  truth  He  came  to  communicate,  to  be, 
through  all  the  following  ages,  swept  about  upon 
the  surging,  changing  sea  of  popular  will.  He 
formed  also  the  casket,  and  left  it  to  contain  and 
guard  the  precious  treasure,  until  His  coming  again. 
He  constituted  His  Church  to  be,  in  the  Apostle's 
words,  "  the  pillar  and  ground  of  the  truth."  He 
found  His  disciples  living  under  the  Mosaic  ritual — 
under  a  well  defined,  strictly  organized  plan  of  gov- 
ernment, and  is  it  to  be  supposed  that  He  released 
them  from  this,  and  yet  substituted  nothing  in  its 
place  ?  While  the  Christian  faith  was  but  the  contin- 
uation, the  perfection  of  the  Jewish,  was  it  to  have  no 
restrictions — no  form  of  polity  whatever  ?  Our  rea- 
son would  dictate  to  us,  that  this  cannot  be.  Our 
Lord  knew  too  well  what  was  in  man  thus  to  abandon 
him  to  his  own  idle  caprices. 

It  was  after  our  Master  had  burst  the  bonds  of 
death  and  triumphed  over  the  grave — while  for  a 
time  He  was  still  lingering  on  the  earth  to  cheer  His 
disciples,  and  fit  them  for  the  trials  and  labors  which 
were  at  hand — that  He  gave  them  the  high  commis- 
sion to  go  forth  and  lay  the  foundations  of  that 
spiritual  kingdom  which  was  to  embrace  within  its 
fold,  "all  nations,  and  kindreds,  and  tongues."  His 
clear  and  unequivocal  language  was :  "  Peace  be 
unto  you ;  as  my  Father  hath  sent  me,  even  so  send 
I  you.  And  when  He  said  this,  He  breathed  on 
them,  and  saith  unto  them.  Receive  ye  the  Holy 
Ghost.    Whose  soever  sins  ye  remit,  they  are  remitted 


REASONS    WHY  WE  ARE    CHURCHMEN.  21 

unto  them  ;  and  whose  soever  sins  ye  retain,  they  are 
retained."  "  And  Jesus  came  and  spake  unto  them, 
saying.  All  power  is  given  unto  me  in  heaven  and 
in  earth.  Go  ye,  therefore,  and  teach  all  nations, 
baptizing  them  in  the  name  of  the  Father,  and  of  the 
Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Ghost:  teaching  them  to 
observe  all  things  whatsoever  I  have  commanded 
you ;  and  lo,  I  am  with  you  always,  even  unto  the 
end  of  the  world. '"'^  The  general  belief  has  been, 
that  during  the  forty  days  which  intervened  between 
our  Lord's  resurrection  and  ascension,  while  He  in- 
structed His  disciples  in  "  the  things  pertaining  to  the 
Kingdom  of  God,"  He  also  inculcated  the  organiza- 
tion of  the  Church  He  had  founded.  It  is  evident, 
that  when  immediately  afterwards  they  commenced 
their  ministry,  there  was  no  doubt,  no  hesitation  on 
their  part.  They  at  once  proceeded  to  develope  this 
plan— to  fill  the  vacancy  in  the  number  of  the  Apos- 
tles— "  to  ordain  them  elders  in  every  Church  "f — 
and  to  constitute  the  order  of  Deacons.:):  This  then 
was  the  three-fold  ministry  of  the  Church. 

*  John  XX.  21,  22,  23.     Matt  xxviii.  18,  19,  20. 

f  Acts  xiv.  23. 

X  Bishop  H.  U.  Onderdonk  argues,  {Epis.  Examined,  p.  234,)  that 
this  was  not  the  first  appointment  of  Deacons,  but  that  they  existed 
"m  r^,"  at  least,  long  before.  He  derives  this  conclusion  from  the 
following  arguments— I.  The  Apostles,  even  before  this  time,  could 
not  have  attended  personally,  as  is  generally  supposed,  to  the  distribu- 
tion of  alms.  The  work  was  too  extensive  from  the  first,  and  they 
would  have  had  to  "  leave  the  word  "  altogether,  had  they  discharged 
this  lower  office.  2.  Had  this  work  been  m  the  hands  of  the  Apos- 
tles, they  would  hardly  have  shown  partiality.  It  must,  therefore, 
have  been  previously  committed  to  other  agents.  3.  If  this  was  the 
beginning  of  the  order  of  the  Diaconate,  seven  would  have  been 
hardly  enough  for  the  converts,  daily  increasing  by  thousands.  There 
must,  therefore,  have  been  others  also.     4.  The  Jewish  converts  were 


22  NECESSITY  FOR  KNOWING  THE 

If,  therefore,  a  Church  was  founded  with  its  vaHd 
ministry,  is  it  not  our  duty  to  seek  out  this  fold  and 
unite  with  it?  Christ  —  the  Apostle  tells  us — "is 
Head  over  all  things  to  the  Church,  which  is  His 
body.'"^  Now  the  Body  can  no  more  be  divided 
than  the  Head.  Again,  he  says — "  There  is  one 
Body,  and  one  Spirit,  even  as  ye  are  called  in  one 
hope  of  your  calling ;  one  Lord,  one  faith,  one  bap- 
tism."t  It  is  indeed  a  common  opinion,  and  one 
which  we  often  hear  announced,  that  "  as  long  as  an 
individual  is  truly  religious,  it  is  a  matter  of  no  im- 
portance to  what  body  of  Christians  he  belongs." 
But  if  this  be  of  no  consequence,  why  was  a  Church 
established  at  all  ?     And — to  go  a  step  farther — if  a 

of  course  much  the  most  numerous.  They  did  not,  however  complain 
of  any  neglect.  The  murmuring  came  from  the  foreign  converts. 
There  does  not,  however,  appear  to  have  been  one  native  Hebrew 
among  "  the  seven  ;"  an  omission  which,  without  the  construction 
before  us,  would  have  invited  a  "  murmur  "  from  the  party  before 
favored.  The  probability  therefore  is,  that  this  was  no  new  order  at 
that  time  in  the  Church,  but  that  additional  deacons,  selected  from 
foreigners,  were  then  ordamed  to  minister  to  the  foreign  converts  who 
had  begun  to  increase.  They  were  added  to  provide  for  a  special 
emergency. 

Such  also  is  the  view  of  Mosheim.  He  says — "  The  Jirst  deacons 
of  the  Church,  being  chosen  from  among  Jews  who  were  bom  in 
Palestine,  were  suspected  by  the  foreign  Jews  of  partiality  in  distribu- 
ting the  offerings  which  were  presented  for  the  support  of  the  poor. 
To  remedy,  therefore,  this  disorder,  seven  other  deacons  were  chosen 
by  order  of  the  Apostles,  and  employed  in  the  service  of  that  part  of 
the  Church,  at  Jerusalem,  which  was  composed  of  the  foreign  Jews 
converted  to  Christianity.  Of  these  neiu  ministers,  six  were  foreigners, 
as  appears  by  their  names  ;  the  seventh  was  chosen  out  of  the  prose- 
lytes, of  whom  there  were  a  certain  number  among  the  first  Christians 
at  Jerusalem,  and  to  whom  it  was  reasonable  that  some  regard  should 
be  shown  in  the  elections  of  the  Deacons  as  well  as  to  the  foreign 
Jews. — Comm.  de  Rebus  Christ,  p.  n8. 

♦  Eph  i.  22,  23.  t  Eph.  iv.  4. 


REASONS    WHY  WE  ARE   CHURCHMEN.  2$ 

Church  has  been  established,  and  that  Church  is  the 
body  of  Christ,  unless  we  are  members  of  her  fold, 
how  can  we  be  members  of  Christ  ? 

Divisions  certainly  were  not  regarded  by  the 
Apostles,  as  matters  of  but  little  moment.  The 
declaration  of  St.  Paul  is — "  That  there  should  be  no 
schism  in  the  body,"*  and  when  the  Corinthian 
converts,  in  their  dissensions,  began  to  arrange  them- 
selves under  the  party  names  of  Paul  and  Apollos, 
and  Cephas,  they  were  most  sternly  rebuked  by  the 
great  Apostle  of  the  Gentiles.  His  indignant  inquiry 
was  —  "  Is  Christ  divided  ?"  and  the  exhortation 
which  he  wrote  them  was — "Now  I  beseech  you, 
brethren,  by  the  name  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  that 
ye  all  speak  the  same  thing,  and  that  ^/lere  be  no  di- 
visions {Gxifff^ocTo)  among  you  ;  bnt  that  fe  be  per- 
fectly joined  together  in  the  same  mind,  and  in  the 
same  judgment."t  So  fearful  did  he  regard  this  sin 
of  schism,  that  the  authors  of  it  were  not  to  be 
treated  as  Christians.  His  instructions  on  this  head 
were — "  Now  I  beseech  you,  brethren,  mark  them 
which  caitse  divisions  and  offences,  contrary  to  the 
doctrine  which  ye  have  learned ;  and  avoid  them, 
for  they  that  are  such  serve  not  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ"\  And  so  St.  Jude  speaks  of  those  "  who  sep- 
arate themselves,"  as  "  having  not  the  spirit."  Is  it 
not,  then,  a  matter  of  importance  to  belong  to  that 
Church  which  our  Lord  founded  ?  And  if  you  are 
now  numbered  with  her  members,  should  you  not 
understand  the  ground  of  your  belief — the  reasons 
why  you  are  Churchmen  ?§ 

*  I  Cor.  xii.  25.  t  I  Cor.  i.  12.  %  Rom.  x\ri.  17. 

§  The  early  Fathers  always  wrote  on  the  subject  of  schism,  in  the 


24  NECESSITY    FOR    KNOWING     THE 

Again — a  second  reason  for  acquiring  this  knowledge 
is  because  if  we  are  members  of  that  CJiurch  which 

same  strain  with  the  Apostles.  Ignatius  says — "  As  children  of  light 
and  truth,  avoid  the  division  of  unity."     Epist.  ad  Philad. 

Ireneus  says — "  The  spiritual  man  will  also  judge  those  who  work 
divisions  ;  vain  men,  devoid  of  the  love  of  God,  seeking  their  own 
advantage  more  than  the  unity  of  the  Church  ;  who  for  trifling,  nay, 
for  any  causes,  rend  and  divide  the  great  and  glorious  body  of  Christ, 
and  as  far  as  in  them  lies,  slay  it  ;  who  speak  peace,  and  work  war- 
fare ;  who  truly  strain  at  the  gnat,  and  swallow  the  camel ;  for  no 
improvement  can  be  made  by  them  so  great  as  is  the  evil  of  schism.^' 
Adv.  Hceres.  iv.  c.  33. 

The  martyr  Cyprian  wrote  a  treatise — ♦' De  Unitate  Ecclesise 
Catholicos  " — especially  upon  this  subject.  He  says:  "Heresy  and 
schism  are  his  [Satan's]  invention,  for  the  subversion  of  faith,  the 
corruption  of  truth,  the  division  of  unity.  Those  whom  he  can  no 
longer  retain  in  the  blindness  of  the  former  way,  he  circumvents  by 
betraying  them  mto  deviation  from  their  new  progress.  He  tears 
men  away  from  the  Church  ;  and  while  they  imagine  themselves  to 
have  come  unto  the  light,  and  to  have  escaped  the  night  of  this  world, 
he  secretl}'  infuses  a  second  accession  of  darkness  ;  so  that  they  con- 
tinue to  call  themselves  Christians,  while  they  stand  not  by  the  Gospel 
of  Christ,  and  never  heed  or  obey  him." 

In  the  same  work  he  speaks  also  of  Episcopacy  as  a  witness  for 
Unity.  "He  who  holds  not  this  unity  of  the  Church,  does  he  think 
that  he  holds  the  faith  ?  When  a  man  struggles  against  the  Church, 
and  resists  it,  does  he  suppose  that  he  continues  to  belong  to  it?" 

In  the  same  way  St.  Augustine  writes  against  the  Donatists,  and 
his  testimony  is  particularly  valuable,  because  this  was  a  sect  whose 
only  fxrm  was  schism,  while  in  other  points — as  Mosheim  states — 
"  their  doctrine  was  conformable  to  that  of  the  Church,  as  even  their 
adversaries  confess."  {Cent,  \v.  part  ii.  ch.  5.  sec.  8.)  But  mark  with 
what  severity  he  reproves  their  sin.  He  supposes  the  Church  thus  to 
address  them — "My  children,  why  do  you  complain  of  your  Mother? 
I  wish  to  hear  why  you  have  deserted  me.  You  accuse  your  brethren, 
and  I  am  rent  asunder  by  you.  When  the  Gentiles  persecuted  me,  I 
suffered  much  ;  many  left  me,  but  they  left  me  through  fear.  No 
one  forced /«?«  thus  to  rebel  against  me.  You  say  that  you  are  with 
me,  but  you  must  perceive  that  this  is  false  !  I  am  called  Catholic  ; 
you  are  on  the  side  of  Donatus."  (Contra  Donat.  ix.  8.)  And  again 
he  says  :  "  The  question  between  us  and  the  Donatists  is,  Where  is 
the  Church  of  God?    With  us,  or  with  them?     This  Church  is  one, 


REASONS    WHY  WE  ARE   CHURCHMEN.  25 

our  Lord  founded,  zue  must  be  free  from  many  errors 
on  various  subjects  zvhieh  mingle  ivith  the  faith  of 
those  ivho  dissent  from  her.  Our  object  of  course 
must  be,  to  receive  the  truth  as  pure  as  possible. 
How  should  we  have  acted,  therefore,  had  we  lived 
in  the  days  of  our  Lord's  personal  ministry  on  the 
earth  ?  There  would  then  have  been  no  doubts  on 
this  subject  We  should,  of  course,  have  attached 
ourselves  to  Him,  as  members  of  His  own  household 
of  faith — the  little  Church  of  which  He  was  the 
Visible  Head. 

But  the  Church  did  not  end  with  our  Lord,  for 
when  He  ascended  up,  He  left  others  as  His  ap- 
pointed successors,  saying  unto  them :  "  As  my 
Father  hath  sent  me,  even  so  send  I  you."  Of 
course,  then,  at  this  time  we  should  have  thought  it 
safest  to  unite  with  them  in  visible  fellowship, 
esteeming  ourselves  in  this  way  more  certain  of 
spiritual  blessings,  than  by  belonging  to  any  self- 
constituted  societies  in  Galilee  or  Antioch,  (had  such 
things  existed,)  which  had  merely  received  som.e  of 
the  prominent  doctrines  of  our  Lord,  yet  without 
submitting  to  the  rule  of  His  chosen  Apostles.  Yet 
these  Apostles  also  appointed  their  successors,  to 
whom  this  same  authority  was  thus  transmitted,  and 
they  again  consecrated  others,  and  so  the  chain  was 
kept  up  through  the  second  century,  and  the  third, 
and  the  fourth,  until  it  reaches  down  even  to  our 
day.  Is  not,  then,  the  obligation  to  belong  to  this 
Church  as  imperative  upon  us,  in  the  nineteenth 
century,  as  it  was  upon  those  who  lived  in  the  first  ? 

denominated   by   our   ancestors,  Catholic ;  to  denote,   by   the   very 
name,  that  it  is  every  where  diffused."    Ep.  ad  Cath.  ii.  338. 


26  NECESSITY    FOR    KNOWING     THE 

And  \i  we  now  find  the  Christian  world  divided  into 
contending  sects,  which  have  strayed  off  from  her 
fold — disclaimed  some  of  her  "doctrines  —  and  re- 
nounced her  Apostolic  ministry — I  submit  to  you  the 
question,  Which  is  the  part  of  prudence  ?  Is  it  not 
to  find  out  this  Church,  which  has  come  down  from 
the  earliest  age,  and  to  unite  with  her  ?  Let  your 
reason  decide. 

But  we  are  told  that  each  one  who  loves  the  Lord 
Jesus  in  sincerity  and  truth,  shall  be  saved  at  last 
through  His  atonement,  even  though  he  "  follow  not 
with  us."  We  deny  it  not,  for  sorrowful  indeed 
would  be  our  view  of  human  life  could  we  believe 
otherwise.  When  the  voice  of  strife  is  loud  around 
us,  and  the  truth  is  defaced  by  passion  or  obscured 
by  prejudice,  we  can  look  forward  with  joy  to  the 
hour  when  the  end  of  all  these  things  shall  be. 
Then,  we  trust  that  those  mighty  spirits  who  now 
display  so  much  intellectual  power  while  they  have 
"  fallen  out  by  the  way,"  will  meet  in  peace  before 
their  Father's  throne,  and  as  they  rejoice  together  in 
the  light  of  His  countenance,  will  forget  the  differ- 
ences which  divided  them  on  their  journey  thither. 
"  The  spirit  of  Christianity  is  a  spirit  of  love,  and  it 
often  dwells  among  those  who,  in  this  world  of  cor- 
ruption and  folly,  are  most  widely  severed.  It  is 
cheering  to  think,  that  when  the  films  which  obscure 
our  earthly  vision  are  removed,  we  may  all  be 
found  prostrate  in  adoration  before  the  Lamb  who 
died  to  redeem  all  by  His  most  precious  blood."" 
Yet  still,  those  who  have  abandoned  the  Church, 
must  necessarily  be  mingling   some   errors  with   the 

*  Dr.  Jarvis's  Sermon  on  Church  Unity,  in  1836,  p.  26,  n. 


REASONS   WHY  WE  ARE   CHURCHMEN.  37 

truths  they  receive  ;  may  they  not  therefore  be  de- 
priving themselves  of  advantages,  and  cutting  them- 
selves off  from  spiritual  blessings,  which  otherwise 
they  would  enjoy,  on  tlieir  way  to  heaven  ?  This  is 
a  point  which  we  shall  not  fully  know  until  the  last 
day.  Admit,  however,  the  principle  on  which  this 
objection  to  our  claims  is  founded,  and  you  may  as 
well  assert  that,  since  we  believe  the  heathen  who 
lives  up  to  the  light  he  has  will  be  saved,*  therefore 
there  is  no  use  in  his  ever  hearing  of  Christianity, 
because  he  can  reach  heaven  without  it.  This  view 
indeed  confounds  all  principle  of  belief — renders 
truth  utterly  unimportant — and  inculcates  the  notion, 
that  God  may  impart  directions  to  us,  yet  if  we  in 
our  wisdom  believe  them  to  be  of  secondary  impor- 
tance, we  may  entirely  disregard  them.f 

*  Rom.  ii.  14. 

t  There  is  probably  no  body  of  Christians  more  inclined  to  narrow 
down  salvation  than  the  Romanists,  and  yet  they  do  not  confine  it  to 
those  within  the  pale  of  their  own  Church.  They  extend  it  also  to 
others  who  from  conscientious  motives  have  remained  separated  from 
it.  Thus,  their  great  writer  Dr.  Milner  says — "  Catholic  divines  and 
the  holy  fathers,  at  the  same  time  that  they  strictly  insist  on  the 
necessity  of  adhering  to  the  doctrine  and  communion  of  the  Catholic 
Church,  make  an  express  exception  in  favor  of  what  is  termed  invin- 
cible ignorance  ;  which  occurs  when  persons  out  of  the  true  Church 
are  sincerely  and  firmly  resolved,  in  spite  of  all  worldly  allurements  on 
the  one  hand,  and  all  opposition  to  the  contrary  on  the  other,  to  enter 
into  it,  if  they  could  find  it  out,  and  when  they  use  their  best  endea- 
vors for  this  purpose.  This  exception  in  favor  of  the  invincibly 
ignorant  is  made  by  the  same  St.  Augustine  who  so  strictly  insists  on 

the  general  rule our  great  controvertist,    Bellarmine,    asserts 

that  such  Christians,  'in  virtue  of  the  disposition  of  their  hearts, 
belong  to  the  Catholic  Church.'  "  End  of  Controversy,  Letter  xxi. 
p.  137,  Lond.  1841. 

Again— in  another  place,  in  his  letter  on  "the  Qualities  of  Catho- 
licity," he  says,  when  speaking  of  the  Church  of  England,  and  other 
bodies  of  Christians  not  in  union  with  the  Romish  Church — "All  the 


28  NECESSITY  FOR    KNOWING    THE 

In  examining  this  principle,  indeed,  I  know  not 
how  better  to  explain  it,  than  by  bringing  before  you 
the  striking  illustration  employed  by  the  Bishop  of 
Vermont.  He  thus  shows  its  absurdity.  "  The 
respectable  society  of  Friends,  frequently  called 
Quakers,  are  well  known  as  professing  Christianity, 
and  as  being  on  some  points  remarkably  zealous 
followers  of  the  precepts  of  the  Gospel.  Their  love 
of  peace — their  order — their  patient  endurance  of 
persecution — what  more  lovely  exhibition  of  practical 
religion  have  modern  days  to  boast,  than  this  re- 
markable people  have  displayed  in  these  particulars  ? 
But  they  have  adopted  the  erroneous  idea,  that  a 
purer  dispensation  of  the  Gospel  was  committed  to 
George  Fox,  the  founder  of  this  sect,  which  super- 
seded in  some  respects  the  directions  of  Apostolic 
rule,  and  hence  they  have  no  order  of  the  ministry, 
no  water  baptism,  no  administration  of  the  com- 
munion. Their  women  are  allowed  to  teach  in  public 
equally  with  men,  and  they  are  strong  opponents  in 
all  these  points  of  the  Church  established  by  the 
Apostles.  Now  is  it  competent  for  us  to  say,  that 
the  pious  and  sincere  Quaker  shall  be  cast  out  of  the 
kingdom  of  Christ,  on  account  of  these  serious  errors 
in  his  system  ?  God  forbid  !  We  are  not  the  judges 
of  our  fellows.     Nay,  it  is  the  voice  of  the  Redeemer 

young  children  who  have  been  baptized  in  them,  and  all  invincibly 
ignorant  Christians,  who  exteriorly  adhere  to  them,  really  belong  to 
the  Catholic  Church,  as  I  have  shov/n  above."     Letter  xxix.  p.  190. 

The  same  view  of  this  doctrine  as  held  by  the  Church  of  Rome  is 
given  by  Palmer  in  his  Treatise  on  the  Church,  vol.  i.  p.  240.  When 
therefore  they  assert — "  There  is  no  salvation  without  the  pale  of  the 
Catholic  Church  " — the  question  is,  What  do  they  mean  by  "  the 
Catholic  Church  ?" 


REASONS    WHY    WE    ARE    CHURCHMEN.  29 

himself  which  saith,  'Judge  not,  that  ye  be  not 
judged.'  On  the  other  hand,  shall  we  admit  that 
the  pious  Quaker  is  on  an  equality  with  those  who, 
being  equally  sincere,  have  retained  faithfully  the 
whole  system  of  the  Book  of  God  ?  Surely  not,  for 
this  would  be  an  absurdity.  It  is  preposterous  to 
say,  that  the  man  who  is  in  error  can  be  on  an 
equality  with  him  that  is  oot  in  error.  It  is  prepos- 
terous to  say,  that  he  who  departs  from  the  rules  of 
the  Christian  Church,  is  as  safe  as  he  who  diligently 
keeps  them.  Consequently,  while  we  behold  the 
Quaker  with  all  benevolence  of  feeling,  and  willingly 
praise  everything  in  his  faith  and  practice  which 
accords  with  the  Word  of  God,  we  hesitate  not  to 
declare,  plainly  and  unequivocally,  that  he  has  fallen 
into  error  on  the  points  specified ;  that  in  this  error 
we  cannot  take  any  part,  nor  can  we  give  it  either 
allowance  or  encouragement ;  while,  nevertheless,  we 
do  not  undertake  to  define  the  peril  to  which  it 
exposes  him  before  God,  but  leave  him  to  that 
tribunal  before  which  we  must  all  stand  at  the  day  of 
final  retribution."^^ 

Now  we  may  apply  this  view  to  the  whole  contro- 
versy, on  the  claims  of  the  different  denominations  of 
Christians.  The  question  is  not — can  a  person  be 
saved  without  the  Church?  but,  has  God  established 
any  Church  with  a  particular  organization,  which  is 
still  in  existence  ?  If  He  has,  it  is  clearly  our  duty 
to  be  included  with  this  fold.  Thus  shall  we  be  con- 
forming ourselves  most  nearly  to  the  divine  standard, 
and  of  course  be  most  certain  of  spiritual  blessings. 

*  The  Prim.  Church  compared  with  the  Prot.  Episcopal  Church, 
by  Bp.  Hopkins,  p.  7. 


30  NECESSITY  FOR  KNOWING   THE 

All  these  various  sects  cannot  be  right.  Truth  can- 
not have  a  hundred  forms.  She  is  one,  and  we  must 
search  her  out  among  all  the  counterfeits  by  which 
she  is  surrounded,  and  then  cleave  to  her. 

Again — another  reason  why  we  should  understand 
our  distinctive  Church  principles  is,,  because  without 
this  knowledge  %ve  cannot  be  iisefnl  or  consistent 
Churchmen.  The  times  in  which  we  live  are  pecu- 
liar. It  seems  to  be  a  crisis  both  in  the  intellectual 
and  moral  history  of  our  race.  It  is  an  age  of 
inquiry  and  investigation  —  an  age  "  emulous  of 
change "  —  when  the  truths  in  which  our  fathers 
rested  are  questioned  and  disallowed,  and  the  maxim 
of  many  around  us  is — "  Old  things  have  passed 
away;  all  things  have  become  new."  And  with 
reference  to  no  subject  is  this  spirit  more  fully  dis- 
played than  that  of  religion.  Whatever  may  be  the 
result,  the  time  of  indifference  at  least  is  going  by. 
Men  seem  to  be  awakening  to  the  truth,  that  it  is  a 
matter  of  concern  and  importance  whether  or  not 
they  are  in  the  right  way.  Experience  is  beginning 
to  demonstrate  to  them,  tliat  he  whose  creed  is  erro- 
neous, will  at  length  become  erroneous  in  his  life 
also,  and  they  are  therefore  learning  to  discard  that 
shallow  sophism  of  the  poet — 

"  For  modes  of  faith,  let  graceless  zealots  fight  ; 
His  can't  be  wrong  whose  life  is  in  the  right."* 

For  it  is  evident,  that  if  his  religion  has  any  hold 
upon  hira  at  all,  his  life  will  partake  of  the  eccentrici- 
ties of  his  behef,  and  be,  in  fact,  but  his  creed  de- 
veloped  in   action.     The   consequence   is,   that   the 

*  Pope's  Essay  on  Man,  Ep.  iii. 


REASONS    WHY  IVE  ARE    CHURCHMEN.  3 1 

sound  of  theological  warfare  has  lately  come  up  with 
redoubled  energy  from  all  quarters  of  the  Christian 
world.  We  hear  on  every  side  the  earnest  inquiry — 
"  What  is  truth  ?"  And  the  brightest  sign  of  the 
times  is,  tliat  the  thoughtful  and  the  serious  in  such 
numbers  are  looking  to  the  Church.  They  see  her 
standing  unaltered  in  the  midst  of  all  this  conflict. 
It  rages  around,  yet  her  venerable  battlements  are 
untouched.  The  spirit  of  the  age  is  continually 
modifying  the  sects  about  her,  yet  she  is  now  in 
doctrine,  and  worship,  and  ministry,  what  she  was  in 
the  Apostles'  days.  Time  writes  no  wrinkle  on  her 
brow,  and  impairs  not  her  strength.  Is  it  not 
natural,  then,  that  the  question  should  be  often 
asked  by  those  who  are  tired  of  the  contention  and 
change  they  meet  with  elsewhere — What  is  the 
secret  of  this  stability  ?  Is  it  not  also  the  duty  of 
each  Churchman,  to  study  her  distinctive  features, 
that  he  may  be  enabled  both  to  stand  fast  in  the  old 
ways,  and  also  to  give  a  reason  for  his  choice  to  the 
many  who  are  inquiring  ? 

We  can  see,  too,  that  the  day  is  approaching  in 
which  she  must  take  part  in  the  conflict,  to  repel  the 
assaults  of  her  enemies.  Her  wonderful  increase  has 
not  been  unmarked  by  those  who  are  opposed  to 
her,  and  now  there  is  on  every  side  a  rallying  to 
stop  her  progress.  Should  not  her  friends  then 
know  why  they  belong  to  her  fold,  and  the  points  in 
which  she  differs  from  those  who  are  arrayed  against 
her  ?  No  one  can  long  labor  with  effect  in  a  cause 
which  he  docs  not  perfectly  understand.  He  may 
be  aroused  to  a  spasmodic  effort  by  some  sudden 
burst  of  enthusiasm,  but  it  needs  something  more  to 


32  NECESSITY    FOR    KNOWING     THE 

sustain  him  amid  the  weariness  and  self-denial  of 
continued  exertion.  To  inspire  him  with  an  abiding 
earnestness,  his  views  must  be  clear  and  distinct. 
He  must  be,  as  it  were,  deeply  penetrated  with  the 
truth  he  would  advocate,  and  then  he  will  be  com- 
pehed  to  listen  reverently  to  her  voice,  and  to  go 
forth  and  labor  in  her  behalf,  when  she  points  him 
to  the  field.  Otherwise  a  secret,  lurking  unbelief  will 
belie  the  cold  profession  of  his  lips,  or  else,  if  be- 
lieved at  all,  the  truth  for  which  he  is  bound  to  con- 
tend will  be  entirely  inoperative,  and  "  he  bed-ridden 
in  the  dormitory  of  the  soul."* 

The  Church  can  never  depend  upon  the  stability 
of  her  ignorant  members.  He  who  attends  her  ser- 
vices, merely  because  he  was  born  a  Churchman — or 
because  to  do  so  is  convenient — or  because  he  pre- 
fers the  minister  who  happens  to  officiate  at  her 
altar — can  be  of  but  little  benefit  to  her  cause.  The 
slightest  reason  will  induce  him  to  leave  her  fold  and 
unite  with  others.  He  has  merely  a  personal  pre- 
ference, not  founded  on  any  distinct  understanding 
of  her  claims.  Far  be  it  from  me,  my  brethren,  to 
speak  in  the  slightest  degree  in  disparagement  of  that 
feeling  of  affection  which  binds  a  people  to  their 
pastor,  for  no  one  prizes  it  more  highly  than  I  do. 
Yet  it  must  be  engrafted  upon  Churchmanship,  not 
substituted  for  it.  LeJ;  an  individual  be  attached 
from  principle  to  the  Church  herself,  and  then  any 
pastoral  tie  will  but  strengthen  his  love  for  her.  But 
where  this  exists  alone,  pleasant  as  it  may  be  to  tlie 
individual    towards    whom    this    affection    is    direct- 

*  Coleridge's  Friend,  Essay  xv. 


kEASONS    IVHY    WE    ARE    CHURCHMEN:  ^Z 

ed,  it  will  often  in  the  end  cause  the  Church  to 
suffer. 

In  proof  of  this,  we  could  point  you  to  cases  in 
which  large  and  flourishing  congregations,  upon  the 
death  or  removal  of  their  minister,  have  been  sadly- 
injured  by  their  members  scattering  to  the  sects 
which  surrounded  them.  And  the  reason  is  evident. 
There  was  no  Church  principle  there,  and  when  their 
head  was  removed  they  thought  not  of  the  Apostolic 
Church,  but  merely  looked  around  for  some  one  else 
whom  personally  they  could  admire.  But  had  they 
been  grounded  in  a  knowledge  of  the  claims  of  their 
Church,  ihey  would  have  felt  that  the  first  duty  was 
to  her — to  cUng  to  her  through  good  report  and  evil 
report — to  devote  themselves  to  build  her  up — while 
the  question  of  their  allegiance  was  entirely  indepen- 
dent of  any  attachment  or  dislike  to  the  individual 
who,  for  the  time,  was  ministering  at  her  altar. 
Fearful  indeed  was  often  the  wickedness  of  the 
Scribes  and  Pharisees  in  the  days  of  our  Lord ;  and 
yet,  while  He  condemned  their  conduct.  He  declared 
that  they  were  the  authorized  teachers  of  the  nation, 
and  directed  his  disciples  to  reverence  them  according- 
ly. "  The  Scribes  and  the  Pharisees  " — said  he —  "  sit 
in  Moses'  seat :  all  therefore  whatsoever  they  bid  you 
observe,  that  observe  and  do  ;  but  do  not  ye  after 
their  works  :  for  they  say  and  do  not'"'^ 

And  now,  let  me  close  this  part  of  the  subject,  by 
giving  you  the  testimony  of  one  whose  name  and 
worth  have  been  widely  known  through  the  religious 
community.  Probably  few  among  our  clergy  have 
been  more  honored  by  those  who  differ  from  us  on 

*  Matt,  xxiii.  2,  3. 

3 


34  NECESSITY  FOR   KNOWING    THE 

the  subject  of  Church  government,  than  the  late 
Dr.  Bedell  of  Philadelphia.  We  find,  however,  his 
biographer.  Dr.  Tyng,  of  the  same  city,  in  describing 
his  views  towards  the  close  of  his  ministry,  remarks : 
"  He  had  seldom  preached  in  Philadelphia  upon 
what  are  termed  the  '  distinctive  principles  '  of  the 
Episcopal  Church,  finding  so  much  more  pressing 
calls  for  his  time  and  efforts  in  teaching  the  great 
principles  of  the  Gospel,  which  are  indispensable  to 
man's  salvation,  and  desiring  first  to  build  up  his 
people  in  the  acceptance  and  love  of  these  .  .  .  That 
the  time  however  had  come,  when  a  more  decided 
exhibition  of  these  points'  of  distinction  might  have 
been  desirable,  when  his  own  health  failed  and  his 
ministry  closed,  I  have  no  doubt.  And  this  seems 
to  have  been,  at  that  time,  his  own  impression  and 
plan  ;  for  he  had  commenced  a  course  of  sermons 
upon  this  class  of  subjects,  which  his  failing  health 
never  allowed  him  to  deliver  or  to  complete."  He 
referred  to  this  fact  in  a  conversation  with  one  of  his 
brethren  in  the  ministry,  at  Bedford,  but  a  few  weeks 
before  his  death.  That  gentleman  thus  relates  it,  in 
a  letter  to  Mrs.  Bedell — "  He  said,  like  many  who 
thought  and  acted  with  him,  he  had  for  years  said 
little  on  the  peculiarities  of  our  Church  ;  but  the 
period  had  arrived  when  they  should  be  taught  and 
preached.  While  many  in  their  preaching  had  given 
them  too  much  prominency,  he  had  given  them  too 
little ;  but  the  state  of  the  times  seemed  to  require  it. 
These  had  now  changed  for  the  better,  and  the  same 
foundation  for  difference  did  not  exist.  He  then 
added,  very  emphatically,  '  If  God  spares  my  life,  I 
intend  dehvering  a  course  of  sermons  on  Episcopacy 


REASONS    WHY    WE    ARE    CHURCHMEN.  35 

this  coming  winter.'  This  course,  he  informed  me, 
he  had  then  in  preparation.  On  this  passage  Dr. 
Tyng  remarks :  "  As  certainly  as  it  is  our  duty  to 
declare  the  whole  counsel  of  God,  I  concede  it  is  our 
duty  to  declare  the  doctrines  of  the  scripture  in 
regard  to  the  Church  of  Christ."* 

Such  then  are  some  of  the  reasons  why  you  should 
understand  your  distinctive  principles  as  Churchmen. 
In  concluding,  then,  this  Introductory  Lecture,  I 
would  ask  your  candid  attention  to  those  which  shall 
follow.  Much  which  may  be  presented,  if  new  and 
strange,  will  be  regarded  at  first  with  but  little  favor. 
It  may  be  at  variance  with  views  previously  adopted. 
It  depends,  however,  entirely  upon  argument,  and  we 
ask  you  to  dismiss  all  prejudice  and  weigh  candidly 
and  fairly  what  may  be  said.  We  shrink  not  from 
investigation  on  this  subject.  We  court  the  most 
rigid  inquiry. 

And  let  me  not  be  met  at  the  outset  with  the  usual 
cry  of  bigotry.  That  epithet  is  surely  misapplied  to 
one  who  is  discharging  a  duty  to  which  he  is  called 
by  his  ordination-vow,  while  it  is  done  in  no  hostile 
or  unkindly  spirit  towards  others.  There  is,  indeed, 
no  middle  path  on  the  subject.  If  the  ministers 
of  the  Church  believe  her  doctrines  on  this  point, 
they  are  as  much  bound  to  set  them  before  their 
people,  as  they  are  those  which  relate  to  any  other 
point.  With  the  result  they  have  nothing  to  do. 
They  must  feel  as  did  the  Apostle,  when  he  said — 
"  With  me  it  is  a  very  small  thing  that  I   should  be 

judged  of  you,  or  of  man's  judgment but  he 

that  judgeth  me  is  the  Lord."f  Their  business  is  to 
*  Life,  pp.  287,  288.  +  I  Cor.  iv.  3,  4. 


S6  NECESSITY  FOR    KNOWING    THE 

preach  the  eternal  truths  of  the  Gospel,  whether  men 
will  hear  or  whether  they  will  forbear.  Even  when 
all  gainsay  and  reject,  they  can  adopt  the  consoling 
reflection  of  the  ancient  prophet — "  Yet  surely  my 
judgment  is  with  the  Lord,  and  my  work  is  with  my 
God.  " 

We  know,  indeed,  that  to  advocate  the  doctrines 
we  are  inculcating,  is  not  to  act  in  accordance  with 
popular  views.  Yet  he  is  surely  unworthy  of  his 
sacred  calling,  and  regardless  of  the  solemn  hour  of 
retribution  which  is  at  hand,  who,  through  fear  of 
censure  or  a  wish  to  court  applause,  could  shrink 
from  declaring  anything  which  he  conscientiously 
believes.  A  different  path  is  marked  out  for  him,  in 
the  discharge  of  his  duty  as  a  faithful  watchman.  He 
must  warn  the  people  of  his  charge  agamst  every 
opinion  and  every  practice  which  would  rend,  by 
schism,  the  mystical  body  of  their  Redeemer.  There 
is,  too,  a  loftier  destiny  to  be  accomplished,  than  that 
which  falls  to  the  lot  of  him  who  glides  along  easily 
with  tlie  current,  winning  the  praise  of  "  a  generation 
that  are  wise  in  their  own  eyes."  It  is  to  contend 
earnestly  against  the  opinions  of  this  mistaken  world 
— to  be  "  faithful  found  among  the  faithless  " — breast- 
ing the  storm,  and  rebuking  the  cherished  delusions 
of  those  around  him,  even  though  he  should  be 
obliged  to  stand  forth  (to  use  Milton's  words)  as  "  the 
sole  advocate  of  a  discountenanced  truth."  Human 
language,  therefore,  could  not  write  above  the  cham- 
pion of  the  Church  a  nobler  epitaph  than  that 
encomium  ^^hich  the  first  Bishop  of  Calcutta,  Dr. 
Middleton,  pronounced  upon  the  unbending  Horsley 

*  Isaiah  xlix.  4. 


REASONS   WHY   WE  ARE   CHURCHMEN.  Zl 

— "  He  ran  a  glorious  but  unpopular  career,  in  the 
midst  of  an  heretical  and  apostate  age." 

But  we  may  remember  that,  if  now  these  principles 
are  disputed  and  disallowed,  there  was  a  time  when 
their  reception  was  far  different  In  the  earliest  ages 
of  our  faith,  when  the  memory  of  our  Lord  had  not 
yet  become  dim  in  the  minds  and  hearts  of  his  fol- 
lowers, all  gladly  acknowledged  those  truths  for  which 
now  we  are  forced  to  contend.  We  stand  not  alone 
then  in  this  profession.  We  hold  it  with  "  the  glori- 
ous company  of  the  Apostles,"  and  "  the  noble  army 
of  martyrs."  And  these  days  of  union  we  believe 
shall  once  more  return.  Dark  though  the  clouds 
may  be  which  gather  around  us,  the  Sun  of  Righteous- 
ness shall  yet  pour  his  beams  over  this  benighted 
world,  dispelling  these  mists  of  prejudice  and  error. 
And  already  the  distant  horizon  is  lighted  up  with 
the  glory  which  heralds  his  coming.  "  Truth  " — says 
the  Eastern  proverb — "  is  the  daughter  of  Time ;" 
and  though  we  wait  long  for  her  coming,  yet  at  last 
she  will  appear.  Her  progress  cannot  be  stayed,  or 
her  final  triumph  prevented.  She  mocks  the  vain 
efforts  of  her  adversaries.  They  may,  for  a  season, 
imprison  her  in  the  tomb,  but  it  will  only  be  that  she 
may  burst  forth  with  a  new  and  more  glorious  beauty. 
In  vain  for  her  will  be  the  stone,  the  seal,  the  guard. 
She  must  have  her  resurrection.  She  must  enjoy 
her  own  immortality. 

In  this  hope,  then,  we  live ;  when  error  is  rife 
around  us,  striving  to  hold  fast  to  our  steadfastness — 
to  set  forth  the  truth  in  humility — and  looking  for- 
ward to  the  time,  when  all  warring  sects  which  now 
distract  the  Christian  world  shall  profess  with  "  one 


3S  NECESSITY  FOR  KNOWING  THE  REASONS,    ETC. 

heart  the  faith  delivered  to  the  saints,"  and  with 
"  one  mouth  glorify  God."  And  for  this  we  pray, 
when  gathered  in  His  Holy  Temple,  we  utter  those 
solemn  words  of  our  own  Litany  : 

"  From  all  FALSE   DOCTRINE,  HERESY  and  SCHISM, 

Good  Lord,  deliver  us." 


II. 

EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  SCRIPTURE. 

Who  then,  uncalled  by  Thee, 
Dare  touch  Thy  Spouse,  Thy  very  self  below  ? 
Or  who  dares  count  him  summoned  worthily, 

Except  Thy  hand  and  seal  lie  show  ? 

Keble. 

Let  us  look  back  this  evening  through  the  long  vista 
of  nearly  eighteen  centuries,  to  a  little  group  which 
then  had  gathered  in  Judea.  It  was  our  risen  Lord, 
surrounded  by  His  eleven  disciples.  The  time  of  his 
triumph  had  come.  The  fearful  conflict  with  our 
great  enemy  was  over,  and  his  power  broken.  Death 
had  been  vanquished,  and  the  grave  robbed  of  its 
prey.  And  now,  when  the  Son  of  God  was  about  to 
leave  this  world  of  suffering  and  ascend  to  his  Father, 
His  faithful  followers  had  collected  about  Him,  to 
hear  His  last  injunctions  before  "  the  cloud  received 
Him  out  of  their  sight." 

The  outward,  busy  world  knew  not  of  this  little 
assembly,  and  cared  not  for  its  doings.  Yet  in  that 
hour  words  were  spoken  which  changed  the  destiny 
of  man,  and  a  command  was  given,  whose  influence 
should  be  felt  to  the  end  of  time.  Then  was  issued 
that  broad  commission — "  Go  ye  and  teach  all  nations, 
baptizing  them  in  the  name  of  the  Father,  and  of  the 
Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Ghost ;  teaching  tliem  to  ob- 
serve all  things,  whatsoever  I  have  commanded  you." 
Here  is  the  Charter  of  the  Christian  Church — the 
source  of  all  power  to  her  rulers.     The  twilight  dim- 


40        EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  SCRIPTURE. 

ness  of  Judaism  was  over,  and  the  full  glory  of  the 
Sun  of  Righteousness  was  about  to  shine.  Our  Mas- 
ter's kingdom  was  to  fill  the  whole  world.  The  faith, 
no  longer  shut  in  by  the  hills  of  Judea,  was  to  go 
forth  everywhere,  enlightening  the  nations.  His 
ministers  were  to  inherit  the  earth. 

But  what  is  His  Church,  and  who  are  His  minis- 
ters ?  and  how  did  He  constitute  them  ?  To  be 
equal  in  rank — or  each,  according  to  his  degree,  to 
yield  obedience  to  those  above  him  ?  Did  He,  "of 
his  wise  providence  appoint  divers  Orders  in  His 
Church  " — or  one  grade  of  ministers  only  ?  Was  the 
office  of  an  Apostle  to  be  perpetuated,  or  did  its 
authority  expire  when  the  last  survivor  of  the  twelve 
died  at  Ephesus  ?  These  are  the  points  on  which 
the  Church  differs  with  those  about  her,  and  to  a 
consideration  of  which  we  would  ask  your  candid 
attention.  They  are  not  questions  which  can  be  set 
aside,  or  regarded  as  unimportant.  They  act  upon 
our  conduct  in  daily,  practical  life.  They  have  their 
influence  on  the  spiritual  interests  of  millions  of  im- 
mortal beings.  Are  we — or  are  those  who  dissent 
from  us — walking  in  the  path  which  our  Lord  marked 
out,  and  enjoying  the  ministry  which  He  instituted  ? 
These  therefore  are  surely  subjects  to  be  approached, 
not  "  lightly,"  but  "  reverently,  advisedly,  soberly, 
and  in  the  fear  of  God." 

And  where  shall  we  begin  this  investigation  ?  It 
is  the  glory  of  our  Church,  that  she  refers  everything 
to  the  decision  of  Scripture.  Her  Sixth  Article 
declares  most  explicity — "  Holy  Scripture  containeth 
all  things  necessary  to  salvation  :  so  that  whatsoever 
is  not  read  therein,  nor  may  be  proved  thereby,  is 


EPISCOPACY    PROVED    FROM   SCRIPTURE.        41 

not  to  be  required  of  any  man,  that  it  should  be 
beHeved  as  an  article  of  faith,  or  be  thought  requisite 
or  necessary  to  salvation."  To  this  tribunal  then  let 
us  go  in  the  settlement  of  the  important  subject  now 
before  us,  viz.,  the  authority  for  the  Episcopal  form 
of  Church  government.  Let  us  turn  at  once  "  to  the 
law  and  to  the  testimony,"  and  make  our  first  inquiry, 
What  says  the  Word  of  God  ?  What  do  we  learn 
from  its  pages  with  regard  to  the  government  of 
that  Church,  which  our  Lord  and  his  Apostles  in 
their  day  established  ? 

The  first  thing  is — to  set  plainly  before  you  what 
we  believe  to  be  the  truth  on  this  subject,  and  in 
what  respects  we  differ  from  the  various  denomina- 
tions around  us.  We  contend,  then,  that  in  ac- 
cordance with  directions  given  by  our  Lord,  His 
Apostles,  acting  under  the  direct  influence  of  the 
Holy  Spirit,  established  a  Church,  having  a  ministry 
of  three  orders,  and  which  ministry  has  been  con- 
tinued by  their  successors  down  to  the  present  time. 
These  three  orders  were,  1st,  the  Apostles — called  in 
the  following  age,  the  Bishops ;  2nd,  the  Presbyters, 
or  Elders ;  and  3d,  the  Deacons.  We  contend,  also, 
that  there  is  no  instance  of  ordination  recorded  in 
Scripture,  as  being  performed  by  any  except  the 
Apostles,  or  others,  as  Timothy,  or  Titus,  who  had 
been  invested  by  them  with  the  authority  of  Bishops  ; 
in  other  words,  that  there  is  no  instance  anywhere  of 
mere  Presbyters  ordaining.  And  we  believe,  also, 
that  this  remained  an  established  rule  of  the  Church, 
never  violated  for  more  than  1500  years,  until  at  the 
Reformation  in  the  sixteenth  century,  when  some 
bodies   of  Christians,  v.'ho   had   separated   from  the 


42        EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  SCRIPTURE. 

Church,  proceeded  to  ordain  ministers  by  the  hands 
of  mere  priests  or  Presbyters.  We  therefore  require 
in  those  who  officiate  at  our  altars,  that  they  should 
be  Episcopally  ordained,  that  is,  that  they  should  be 
ordaintd  by  some  Bishop,  who  has  derived  his  au- 
thority from  those  Bishops  who  went  before  him  in 
the  Church  in  uninterrupted  succession  since  the 
Apostles'  days/"  This  is  the  doctrine  of  the  Apostol- 
ical succession. 

On  the  other  hand,  those  who  deny  the  necessity 
of  Episcopal  government,  assert  that  the  Apostles  of 
the  Early  Church  left  no  successors — that  it  is  not 
necessary  for  ordination  to  be  performed  by  a  Bishop 
— that  there  is  but  one  order  of  ministers  in  the 
Church,  that  of  Presbyters — and  that  these  have  a 
right,  by  their  own  authority,  to  ordain  and  admit  to 
the  ministry.  Such  then  is  the  dividing  line  between 
us,  and  to  decide  which  view  is  right,  and  most  in 
accordance  with  the  government  of  the  Primitive 
Church,  we  must  refer  to  the  intimations  given  in 
Scripture,  and  the  testimony  of  History  in  the  earliest 
ages  of  our  faith. 

The  first  argument,  then,  we  would  advance,  is 
the  analogy  to  be  drawn  from  the  nature  of  the  min- 
istry in  the  Jeiuish  Church.  The  Church  in  all  ages 
is  the  same,  only  developing  itself  at  one  time  in  a 
greater  maturity  than  it  had  done  under  the  dispen- 
sation which  preceded  it.  In  this  way  we  may 
interpret  the  illustration  used  by  St.  Paul,  in  the  xi. 
of  Romans,   where  he  compares  the    Church  to  an 

*  "  No  man  shall  be  accounted  or  taken  to  be  a  lawful  Bishop, 
Priest,  or  Deacon,  in  this  Church,  except  he  hath  had  Episcopal  Con- 
secration or  Ordination." — Preface  to  the  Ordinal. 


EPISCOPACY    PROVED    FROM   SCRIPTURE.        43 

olive  tree,  from  which,  when  the  appointed  time  had 
come,  some  branches  (that  is,  the  Jews)  were  broken 
off,  and  the  wild  olive  tree  (that  is,  the  Gentile  na- 
tions) was  grafted  in. 

If,  indeed,  we  look  at  the  different  dispensations,  we 
shall  find  that  each  one  was  but  an  expansion  of  the 
last — elevating  man  to  a  higher  stage  of  religious 
truth  than  he  had  before  enjoyed.  Thus  the  Jewish 
dispensation  was  an  advance  as  compared  with  the 
Patriarchal — while  the  Christian  Church  is  but  the 
continuation — the  ripening — the  fuller  development 
of  the  Jewish,  All  things  in  the  Mosaic  economy 
were  but  preparatory  to  things  in  the  Christian  dis- 
pensation, and  typical  of  them.  Therefore  it  was 
that  each  was  prescribed  by  God  Himself  with  such 
distinctness,  and  the  direction  given — "  See  that  thou 
make  all  things  according  to  the  pattern  showed  to 
thee  in  the  mount."*  Look,  then,  how  one  thing 
answers  to  another.  There  were  sacrifices  in  the 
Jewish  Church,  but  these  were  only  intended  to 
shadow  forth  the  one  great  sacrifice  of  our  Lord. 
The  rite  of  entrance  into  the  former  Church  was 
circumcision,  but  in  the  latter.  Baptism  took  its 
place.  The  Passover,  in  the  old  dispensation,  com- 
memorated the  deliverance  of  the  people  of  Israel 
from  the  bondage  of  Egypt,  and  at  the  same  time 
pointed  forward  to  the  Lamb  of  God.  But  this  was 
set  aside  by  our  Lord,  when  He  substituted  in  place 
of  it  the  Sacrament  of  His  Supper,  which  in  the 
Christian  Church  was  to  commemorate  the  greater 
deliverance  which  He  had  wrought  out  from  a  more 
fearful  bondage.     Thus,  you  may  perfectly  draw  the 

*  Heb.  viii.  5. 


41-  EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  SCRIPTURE. 

parallel  between  the  two  Churches,  and  you  will  find, 
as  we  remarked,  that  the  one  is  only  the  continua- 
tion of  the  other,  modified  by  the  clearer  light  which 
had  beamed  upon  the  world.  The  difference  is,  that 
in  the  former,  they  looked  forward  to  an  expected 
Sayiour — while,  in  the  latter,  we  look  back  to  this 
Saviour  who  has  already  come. 

Now  let  us  turn  to  the  ministry,  and  see  how  the 
analogy  holds  good  in  this  case.  We  find  that,  in 
the  Jewish  Church,  God  Himself  instituted  a  priest- 
hood, consisting  of  three  orders,  viz.,  the  High  Priest, 
the  ordinary  Priests,  and  the  Levites.  These,  through 
all  ages,  were  the  only  authorized  teachers  of  the  na- 
tion— the  only  ones  permitted  to  offer  sacrifice  in 
behalf  of  the  people.  Should  we  not  then  naturally 
expect,  that  when  the  Christian  ministry  took  the 
place  of  this  priesthood,  it  would  be,  like  everything 
else,  conformed  in  some  degree  to  the  ancient  model  ? 
Such  would  be  our  reasonable  supposition,  and  we 
find  it  realized.  In  the  early  Church — as  its  condi- 
tion is  learned  both  from  Scripture  and  History — we 
recognize  everywhere  the  traces  of  a  three-fold 
ministry — Bishops,  Priests,  and  Deacons. 

See,  too,  how  strictly,  under  the  old  Dispensation, 
the  Priesthood  was  guarded  from  the  intrusion  of 
those  who  could  not  enter  it  by  regular  descent  from 
the  family  of  Aaron.  "  No  man  " — writes  the  Apos- 
tle in  his  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews — "  taketh  this  honor 
uaito  himself,  but  he  that  is  called  of  God,  as  was 
Aaron."  In  every  case  the  most  fearful  punishment 
awaited  those  who  ventured  to  discharge  its  sacred 
duties  without  having  been  thus  regularly  commis- 
sioned.    Such    was   the   case    with    Korah    and   his 


EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM   SCRIPTURE.         45 

company.  In  that  spirit  which  prevails  so  extensively 
at  this  day,  they  raised  their  voices  against  the  au- 
thorized ministers  of  the  Sanctuary,  and  in  language 
the  very  counterpart  of  which  we  too  often  hear 
around  us,  proclaimed  themselves  to  be  as  good  as 
those  whom  God  had  commissioned,  and  therefore 
authorized  to  assume  the  duties  of  the  priesthood, 
"  They  gathered  themselves  together  against  Moses 
and  against  Aaron,  and  said  unto  them.  Ye  take  too 
much  upon  you,  seeing  all  the  congregation  are  holy, 
every  one  of  them,  and  the  Lord  is  among  them : 
wherefore,  then,  lift  ye  up  yourselves  above  the 
congregation  of  the  Lord  ?"  But  mark  the  reply  of 
Moses — "  Hear,  I  pray  you,  ye  sons  of  Levi  :  Seem- 
eth  it  but  a  small  thing  unto  you,  that  the  God  of 
Israel  hath  separated  you  from  the  congregation  of 
Israel,  to  bring  you  near  to  Himself  to  do  the  service 
of  the  tabernacle  of  the   Lord,  and  to   stand  before 

tlie  congregation  to  minister  unto  them  ? 

and  seek  ye  the  priesthood  also  ?"*  Read,  too,  how 
God  gave  forth  His  verdict  on  this  point  Fire  from 
the  Lord  burned  all  who  joined  in  that  act — the  earth 
opened  her  bosom,  and  swallowed  those  who  favored 
them — while  the  breath  of  the  pestilence  was  poured 
forth  until  it  had  destroyed  the  people  who  mur- 
mured at  these  judgments.t 

*  Num.  xvi. 

t  Mr.  Percival,  in  his  "Apostolic  Succession,"  has  paraphrased  this 

passage,  to  adapt  it  to  modern  times.     Let  it  be  read  as  overlined, 

and  the  address  might  be  made  to  some  in  our  day  : 

Presbyters 

"Hear,  I  pray  you,  ye  so>is  of  Levi ;  Seemeth  it  but  a  small  thing 

Son  of  God  Christian 

unto  you  that  the  God  of  Israel  hath  separated  you  from  the  congre- 


46        EPISCOPACY  PROVED    FROM  SCRIPTURE. 

Again — we  have  another  example  of  the  same 
kind  in  King  Uzziah.  Listen  to  the  account  in  the 
sacred  record — "  When  he  was  strong,  his  heart  was 
lifted  up  to  his  destruction ;  for  he  transgressed 
against  the  Lord  his  God^  and  went  into  the  temple 
of  the  Lord  to  burn  incense  upon  the  altar  of  incense. 
And  Azariah  the  priest  went  in  after  him,  and  with 
him  fourscore  priests  of  the  Lord,  that  were  valiant 
men.  And  they  withstood  Uzziah  the  king,  and 
said  unto  him,  'It  appertaineth  not  unto  thee,  Uzziah, 
to  burn  incense  unto  the  Lord,  but  to  the  priests,  the 
sons  of  Aaron,  that  are  consecrated  to  burn  incense ; 
go  out  of  the  sanctuary  ;  for  thou  hast  transgressed  ; 
neither  shall  it  be  for  thine  honor  from  the  Lord  God.' 
Then  Uzziah  was  wroth,  and  had  a  censer  in  his 
hand  to  burn  incense  ;  and  while  he  was  wroth  with 
the  priests,  the  leprosy  even  rose  up  in  his  forehead 
before  the  priests  in  the  house  of  the  Lord,  from  be- 
side the  incense  altar.  And  Azariah  the  chief  priest, 
and  all  the  priests,  looked  upon  him,  and  behold,  he 
was  leprous  in  his  forehead,  and  they  thrust  him  out 
from  thence ;  yea  himself  hasted  also  to  go  out,  be- 
cause the  Lord  had  smitten  him.  And  Uzziah  the 
king  was  a  leper  unto  the  day  of  his  death,  and 
dwelt  in  a  several  house,  being  a  leper;  for  he  was  cut 
off  from  the  house  of  the  Lord."*  Thus,  you  perceive 
that  he  entered  the  sanctuary  an  unaccredited  priest, 
and  came  forth  smitten  with  the  plague  of  leprosy. 

people 

gation  of  Isvael,  to  bring  you  near  to  Himself,  to  do  the  service  of  the 

tabernacle  of  the  Lord,  and  to  stand  before  the  congregation  to  min- 

Episcopate 
ister  unto  them?  ....  and  seek  ye  \}na  Priesthood dXsol^^ 
*  2  Chron.  xxvi.  16-21. 


EPISCOPACY    PROVED    FROM   SCRIPTURE.        47 

And  do  you  think,  that  for  fifteen  centuries  God 
thus  carefully  guarded  the  priesthood,  and  by  fearful 
judgments  taught  His  people,  that  none  could  be 
numbered  with  it  except  they  received  the  privilege 
by  direct  succession,  and  then,  as  soon  as  His  Church 
had  expanded  into  a  nobler  form,  did  he  leave  this 
subject  totally  unsettled  ?  Did  He  give  no  authority, 
as  in  old  time,  to  be  transmitted  down  by  descent  ? 
Did  He,  instead  of  sending  authorized  heralds  who 
bore  the  terms  of  peace,  do  what  no  earthly  monarch 
would  have  done,  permit  His  rebellious  subjects  to 
appoint  their  own  messengers  to  proclaim  to  them 
His  will?  No,  brethren,  such  is  not  the  lesson  which 
we  learn  from  the  analogy  of  the  Jewish  priesthood. 

Neither  is  there  any  force  in  the  objection  some- 
times advanced,  that  this  argument  proves  too  much 
— that  it  would  support,  not  only  Episcopacy,  but  also 
the  Papacy.  We  are  told — "  There  was  but  a  single 
Jewish  High  Priest,  and  therefore,  according  to  your 
analogy,  there  should  be  but  a  single  Bishop.  The 
ancient  Church  had  but  one  head ;  if  then  the  princi- 
ple is  to  be  carried  out,  but  one  universal  Bishop 
should  preside  over  Christendom.  You,  therefore, 
are  sustaining  the  claims  of  the  Romanist."  A 
moment's  reflection,  however,  will  show  the  futility 
of  this  objection.  There  was  but  a  single  High 
Priest  among  the  Jews,  because  that  Church  was  to 
stand  single  and  alone,  confined  in  a  great  measure 
to  but  one  land.  All  men  were  obliged  "  to  go  up 
to  Jerusalem,"  as  the  centre  of  their  faith.  But  one 
single  temple  was  allowed  to  be  built,  in  which  sacri- 
fices could  be  offered.  Under  the  Christian  dispensa- 
tion, however,  the  Church  assumed  a  Catholic  cha- 


48  EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  SCRIPTURE, 

racter  and  form.  It  was  to  be  universal — diffused 
everywhere.  Jerusalem  could  no  longer  claim 
extraordinary  privileges,  as  "  the  place  where  men 
ought  to  worship,"  for  everywhere  "  the  true  wor- 
shippers could  worship  the  Father  in  spirit  and  in 
truth."  The  land  became,  under  the  new  economy, 
but  a  portion  of  the  Church,  and  as  such  had  its 
Bishop — its  single  head  and  ecclesiastical  ruler.  And 
so  it  was  throughout  the  world.  The  office  is  every- 
where one  and  the  same,  although,  from  the  extended 
limits  of  the  Church,  it  must  be  held  in  different 
countries,  by  different  and  numerous  individuals. 
The  Catholic  believer,  therefore,  in  passing  from 
diocese  to  diocese,  finds  everywhere  a  successor  of 
the  Jewish  High  Priest,  but  all  the  while  he  is  under 
one  Apostolate,  as  under  one  sky  and  sun. 

But  let  us  proceed  to  the  direct  Scripture  evidence. 
The  first  proof  we  advance  is — that  there  is  a  recog- 
nition, in  the  Acts  and  the  Epistles,  of  the  existence 
of  three  oi'ders  in  the  early  Church.  A  confusion  is, 
indeed,  sometimes  created  in  the  minds  of  readers,  in 
consequence  of  the  indiscriminate  use  of  the  title 
Bishop.  A  few  sentences,  however,  of  explanation 
will  remove  this  difficulty.  As  we  already  remarked 
— the  three  orders  of  ministers  were  ist.  Apostles; 
2nd,  Bishops  or  elders ;  3d,  Deacons.  After,  how- 
ever, the  death  of  the  Apostles,  who  were  the  first 
Bishops,  those  who  succeeded  to  the  Episcopal  office, 
out  of  respect  to  them,  as  having  stood  nearest  to  our 
Lord,  would  not  assume  the  najne  of  Apostles,  although 
they  inherited  their  authority.  They  therefore  took 
the  name  of  Bishops,  leaving  those  in  the  second 
rank  of  the  ministry  to  be  called,  as  before,  Elders  or 


EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  SCRIPTURE.         49 

Presbyters  —  and  the  third,  to  retain  the  title  of 
Deacons.  Thus  it  is  that  the  early  historian,  Theo- 
doret,  gives  the  history  of  this  change  of  name. 
**  The  same  persons  were  anciently  called  promiscu- 
ously both  Bishops  and  Presbyters,  whilst  those  who 
are  now  called  Bishops,  were  called  Apostles.  But 
shortly  after,  the  name  of  Apostles  was  appropriated 
to  such  only  as  were  Apostles  indeed ;  and  then  the 
name  Bishop  was  given  to  those  who  before  were 
called  Apostles.'"^  Thus,  he  says,  that  Epaphroditus 
was  the  Apostie  of  the  Philippians,  and  Titus  the 
Apostle  of  the  Cretians,  and  Timothy  the  Apostle 
of  the  Asiatics.  And  this  he  repeats  in  other 
places,  f 

The  ancient  writer  under  the  name  of  St.  Ambrose 
asserts  the  same  thing.  "  They  who  are  now  called 
Bishops,  were  originally  called  Apostles.  But  the 
holy  Apostles  being  dead,  they  who  were  ordained 
after  tliem  to  govern  the  Churches,  could  not  arrive 
to  the  excellency  of  these  first,  nor  had  they  the 
testimony  of  miracles,  but  were  in  many  other  respects 
inferior  to  them.  Therefore  they  thought  it  not 
decent  to  assume  to  themselves  the  name  of  Apostles, 
but  dividing  the  names,  they  left  to  Presbyters  the 
name  of  the  Presbytery,  and  they  themselves  were 
called  Bishops.;}:  Here,  you  perceive,  is  a  full  ex- 
planation of  the  change.  The  name  however  rs  a 
matter  of  no  importance.  It  is  the  office  and  the 
authority  for  which  we  contend.     We  only  wish  to 

*  Theodoret,  Comm.  in  I  Tim.  iii.  i. 
t  Ibid.  Com.  in  Phil.  i.  I,  and  ii.  25. 

*  Bingham's  Orig.  Eccles.  lib.  ii.  c.  2,  sec.  i . 

4  ..       ^  . 


50        EPISCOPACY  PROVED    FROM    SCRIPTURE. 

prove,  that  there  was  a  grade  of  ministers  higher  in 
rank  than  the  Elders  or  Presbyters.* 

*  If  a  more  familiar  illustration  of  this  change  of  title  may  be  al- 
lowed, we  would  give  the  following.  Suppose  that  Washington  had 
been  elevated  to  the  office  of  Chief  Magistrate  over  this  country,  with 
the  name  of  Dictator,  while  the  highest  magistrate  in  each  state  was 
called,  indiscrimmately.  President  or  Governor.  We  will  imagine, 
also,  that  the  successors  of  Washington,  although  placed  in  office  with 
exactly  the  same  powers,  out  of  respect  to  him  as  the  Pater  Patrice. 
would  not  assume  the  same  title.  They  therefore  took  the  name  oi 
President,  leaving  that  of  Governor  to  be  still  borne  by  the  magistrate 
of  each  state.  Would  this  change  make  any  difference  in  the  office 
itself,  or  render  it  difficult  for  us  to  prove,  that  those  who  in  1785 
were  called  Presidents  or  Governors,  held  the  same  office  with  those 
now  called  Governors  ?  Or  would  any  one  deny,  on  account  of  the 
change  of  name,  that  he  who  is  now  called  the  President  of  the  United 
States  holds  the  same  office  which  his  first  predecessor  held  under  the 
title  of  Dictator  ? 

Bishop  H.  U.  Underdonk  has  given  an  admirable  explanation, 
drawn  from  Scripture.  "The  word  '  Sabbath  '  is  applied  in  Scripture 
to  only  the  Jewish  day  of  rest  ;  by  very  common  use,  however,  it 
means  the  Lord's  day.  Now,  *  the  Sabbath  '  is  abolished  by  Christian- 
ity, and  the  observance  of  it  discountenanced  ;  yet  ministers  of  Christ- 
ian denominations  are  constantly  urging  their  Christian  flocks  to  keep 
*the  Sabbath.'  Does  any  confusion  of  mind  result  from  this  confusion 
of  names  ?  We  suppose  not.  All  concerned  understand,  that  in 
Scripture  the  word  means  the  Jewish  Sabbath,  while  out  of  Scripture 
the  same  word  is  constantly  applied  to  the  Christian  Sabbath.  Let 
the  same  justice  be  done  to  the  word  •  Bishop.*  In  Scripture,  it  means 
a  Presbyter,  properly  so  called.  Out  of  Scripture,  according  to  the 
usage  next  to  universal  of  all  ages  since  the  sacred  canon  was  closed, 
it  means  that  sacerdotal  order,  higher  than  Presbyters,  which  is  found 
in  Scripture  under  the  title  of  *  Apostle'  When  a  Christian  teacher 
who  enjoins  the  observance  of  the  day  which  he  calls  'the  Sabbath,' 
is  asked  for  his  New  Testament  authority,  he  has  to  exclude  all  the 
passages  whick  contain  that  word,  giving  them  a  different  application, 
and  go  to  other  passages  which  do  7iot  contain  it  ;  and  he  agrees  that 
he  seeks  the  thing,  not  the  name.  And  when  we  Episcopalians  are 
asked  for  inspired  authority  for  'Bishops,'  we  do  the  very  same;  we 
give  a  different  application  to  the  passages  which  contain  that  word, 
and  build  on  other  passages,  which  teach  the  fact  of  the  existence  oJ 
Episcopacy,  without  that  appellation.^^     Episcopacy  Examined,  p.  13 


EPISCOPACY  PROV^  FROM  SCRIPTURE.         5 1 

Now  turn  to  the  Acts,,  and  you  will  find  every- 
where recognized  the  three  orders,  Apostles,  Elders, 
and  Deacons.  The  first  chapter  contains  an  account 
of  the  election  of  Matthias,  as  Apostle,  that  he  might 
"  take  the  bishopric "  of  Judas.  In  the  fourteenth 
chapter,  we  are  told  the  Apostles  "  ordained  them 
Elders  in  every  church ;"  and  in  the  sixth  chapter, 
is  the  record  of  the  selection  of  seven  men  "  full  of 
the  Holy  Ghost  and  of  wisdom,"  on  whom  "  the 
Apostles  laid  their  hands,"  and  thus  appointed  them 
Deacons.  In  several  places  "  Apostles  and  Elders  " 
are  mentioned  as  distinct  classes  of  ministers.*  Nor 
ean  it  be  said,  that  the  Elders  here  referred  to  were 
laymen,  for  these  also  are  carefully  distinguished  in 
some  passages,  as  being  again  a  class  distinct  from 
the  other  two.  The  statement  made  is,  "  Apostles, 
Elders,  and  brethren."! 

And  so  it  is  in  the  Epistles.  Take  a  single  in- 
stance in  which  all  the  orders  of  the  ministry  are 
mentioned  together.  We  refer  to  that  salutation 
with  which  the  Epistle  to  the  Philippians  opens — 
"  Paul  and  Timotheus,  the  servants  of  Jesus  Christ, 
to  all  the  saints  in  Christ  Jesus,  which  are  at  Philippi, 
with  the  Bishops  and  Deacons."  Here  are  certainly 
three  orders  of  ministers — the  two  Apostles,  Paul  and 
Timothy,  sending  their  salutations  to  the  Bishops  and 
Deacons.  Now,  change  the  titles  to  those  which 
we  have  shown  you  the  same  orders  bore  in  the  next 
age,  and  it  will  read  thus — "Paul  and  Timotheus, 
Bishops,  to  all  the  saints  {Laity)  at  Philippi,  with  the 
Elders  or  Presbyters,  and  Deacons. 

But  let  us  proceed  to  the  main  point — the  authority 

*  Acts  XV.  2,  4,  6,  22.  and  xvi.  4.         f  Acts  xi.  i,  and  xv.  23, 


52  EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  SCRIPTURE. 

exercised  by  Bishops  in  that  day — and  see  how  en- 
tirely different  it  was  from  that  entrusted  to  the 
second  rank  in  the  ministry.  For  instance,  when  an 
Apostle  gives  a  charge  to  a  Bishop,  we  perceive  at 
once  that  he  is  addressing  "  one  having  authority," 
and  set  to  rule  in  the  Church  of  God,  He  instructs 
him  as  to  the  manner  in  which  he  should  conduct 
himself  towards  the  presbyters  or  elders  over  whom 
he  had  been  placed.  We  shall  find,  on  the  contrary, 
that  with  these  elders  he  dwells  upon  a  totally  -differ- 
ent class  of  duties.  They  are  always  addressed,  and 
cautioned,  and  advised,  as  those  who  are  merely 
pastors  over  congregations.  There  is  no  allusion 
made  to  their  exercising  ecclesiastical  discipline,  or 
admitting  others  to  the  ministry. 

Let  me  give  you  a  striking  example  of  this.  We 
are  told  that  when  St.  Paul  was  on  his  way  to  Jeru- 
salem, having  stopped  at  Miletus,  he  sent  from  thence 
to  the  neighboring  Church,  at  Ephesus,  that  its  elders 
might  come  to  him,  and  receive  his  final  charge, 
since  "  they  should  see  his  face  no  more."  And 
what  does  he  tell  them  ?  why,  he  addresses  them  as 
those  whose  functions  are  entirely  pastoral,  whose 
business  it  is  to  rule,  and  feed,  and  instruct  the  flock 
committed  to  them.  He  directs  them  "  to  remember 
his  warnings  for  the  space  of  three  years  " — "  to  take 
heed  unto  themselves" — "to  take  heed  unto  the  flock 
over  which  the  Holy  Ghost  had  made  them  over- 
seers"— "to  feed  the  Church  of  God" — "to  watch 
against  the  grievous  wolves  that  would  enter  in 
among  them,  not  sparing  the  flock" — and  also  to 
guard  against  "  men  who  should  arise  among  them- 


EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  SCRIPTURE.         53 

selves,  speaking  perverse  things."*  This  is  the 
amount  of  his  address — that  they  should  be  vigilant 
in  guarding  themselves  from  error,  and  also  in  pre- 
serving their  people  from  those  who  would  inculcate 
strange  doctrines.  There  is  nothing  said  about  dis- 
cipline to  be  exercised  among  the  ministry — not  a 
syllable  about  one  having  authority  over  another  to 
depose  him — not  an  intimation  that  any  one  among 
them  had  power  to  ordain.  It  is,  in  fact,  precisely 
the  kind  of  charge  which  any  Bishop  in  this  day 
might  deliver  to  his  clergy,  to  warn  them  to  be  faith- 
ful in  the  discharge  of  their  pastoral  duties. 

Now  mark  the  contrast  in  the  Apostle's  language, 
when  he  writes  to  Timothy,  at  this  same  church  in 
Ephesus.  Timothy  was  a  young  man,  probably 
younger  than  most  of  the  elders  at  Ephesus,  for  St. 
Paul  charges  him — "  let  no  man  despise  thy  youth," 
— and  yet  every  line  of  the  Apostle's  letter  proves, 
that  Timothy  was  invested  with  Episcopal  authority 
over  these  same  presbyters.  The  Epistle  is  not 
intended  to  guide  him  in  any  pastoral  connection 
with  his  flock,  but  rather  to  instruct  him  as  to  the 
manner  in  which  he  should  rule  over  the  elders 
Everything,  for  example,  is  addressed  to  him  per- 
sonally, and  in  the  singular  number,  as  being  some- 
thing in  which  the  others  could  not  share :  "  This 
charge  I  commit  unto  thee,  son  Timothy" — "these 
things  write  I  unto  thee,  that  tJioii  mightest  know 
how  to  behave  thyself  in  the  house  of  God  " — "if  tho7i 
put  the  brethren  in  remembrance  of  these  things."t 

Look  at  the  directions  with  regard  to  his  exercis- 
ing ecclesiastical   discipline.       "That   thou  mightest 

*  Acts  XX.  17-35.  t  I  Tim.  i.  18  ;  iii.  14,  15  ;  iv.  6. 


54        EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  SCRIPTURE. 

charge  some  that  they  teach  no  other  [that  is,  no 
false]  doctrine  " — "  against  an  elder  receive  not  an 
accusation,  but  before  two  or  three  witnesses;" — 
"  them  [that  is,  the  elders  thus  accused]  that  sin, 
rebuke  before  all,  that  others  also  may  fear;" — "  I 
charge  thee,  that  tJioii  observe  these  things  [these 
rules  for  the  regulation  and  discipline  of  the  clergy,] 
without  preferring  one  before  another,  doing  nothing 
by  partiality."* 

See,  again,  the  rules  given  him  with  respect  to 
ordinations.  The  third  chapter  of  the  first  epistle  is 
taken  up  with  describing  qualifications,  for  which  he 
.should  look  in  those  who  are  to  be  admitted  to  the 
ministry.  Thus,  he  says,  that  the  deacons  "  must 
first  be  proved ;  then  let  them  tise  the  ofilice  of  a 
deacon,  being  found  blameless  " — "  the  deacons  must 
be  grave,  not  doubled-tongued,  not  given  to  much 
wine,  not  greedy  of  filthy  lucre,  holding  the  mystery 
of  the  faith  in  a  pure  conscience  " — "they  that  have 
used  the  office  of  a  deacon  well,  purchase  to  them- 
selves a  good  degree  " — "literally,"  says  Dr.  Bloom- 
field,  "  obtain  an  honorable  post,  or  step,  that  is,  a 
higher  degree,  viz.,  of  Presbyter  or  Bishop."f 

In  the  same  way,  the  proper  qualifications  of  a 
presbyter  are  given — "  A  Bishop  [elder  or  presby- 
ter] must  be  blameless,  the  husband  of  one  wife, 
vigilant,  sober,  of  good  behavior,  given  to  hospital- 
ity," &c.  These  descriptions  are  to  guide  him  in 
observing  the  directions  afterwards  given — "lay 
hands  suddenly  on  no  man  ":j: — and  again — "  the 
things  which  thou  hast  heard  of  me,  the  same  com- 

*  I  Tim.  i.  3  ;  v.  19,  20,  21. 

t  Bloomfield's  Greek  Test,  in  loco.  %   i  Tim.  v.  22. 


EFISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  SCRIPTURE.         55 

mit  tJioie  to  faithful  men,  who  shall  be  able  to  teach 
others  also."* 

Now,  I  would  ask,  if,  as  we  are  told,  Timothy  was 
not  a  successor  of  the  Apostles,  but  only  a  Presbyter, 
and  a  young  Presbyter  too,  what  right  had  he  to"  be 
"  receiving  accusations,"  against  his  brother  presby- 
ters, and  "  rebuking  them  before  all  ?"  How  could 
these  things  be,  if  all  ministers  were  equal  in  the 
early  Church  ?  or,  is  it  in  accordance  with  human 
nature,  that  the  elders  of  the  Church  at  Ephesus 
should  thus  have  submitted  to  the  rule  of  one  of  their 
own  number,  evidently,  too,  their  junior  in  years  ? 
On  the  Presbyterian  scheme  of  Church  government, 
I  cannot  understand  what  was  tlie  position  of  Timo- 
thy in  the  Church,  or  his  relative  situation  with 
regard  to  those  who  were  in  the  ministry  with  him. 
These  Epistles  are  to  me,  in  this  case,  a  sealed  book. 
But  look  at  the  page  of  Ecclesiastical  History,  where 
we  are  told  that  Timothy  was  the  first  Apostle  or 
Bishop  of  Ephesus,f  and  all  is  plain.  Then,  I  see 
the  meaning  of  every  direction  given  by  St.  Paul. 
Totally  out  of  place  as  they  would  be,  if  written  to  a 
mere  presbyter,  they  at  the  same  time  compose 
exactly  the  kind  of  charge  which,  in  this  day,  an 
aged  Bishop  of  the  Church  might  write  to  one  who 
was  younger  in  the  Episcopate,  that  he  might  know 
how  to  act  towards  the  clergy  of  his  diocese. 

Look  at  another  example,  equally  striking — that 
of  Titus.     He  says  Eusebius,  "  was  appointed  over 

*  2  Tim.  ii.  2. 

f  Eusebius,  lib.  iii.  c.  4.  "  Timothy  is  recorded  as  having  first 
received  the  Episcopate  at  Ephesus."  Also  Chrysostom,  Hom.  i,  in 
Philip.     Jerome,  Catal.  Scrip,  in  Tim.     Theodoret  Com.   in   I   Tim. 


56        EPISCOPACY  PROVED    FROM    SCRIPTURE. 

the  Churches  in  Crete;"  and  all  ancient  writers  unite 
in  making  the  same  assertion.*  It  is  certainly  con- 
firmed most  tully  by  the  Epistle,  in  which  St.  Paul 
addresses  him  as  one  invested  with  Episcopal  author- 
ity. He  writes  to  him — "  For  this  cause  left  I  thee 
in  Crete,  that  thoic  shouldest  set  in  order  the  things 
that  are  wanting,  and  [that  tJioit  shouldest]  ordain 
elders  in  every  city,  as  I  had  appointed  thee."  He 
tlien  goes  on  to  describe,  as  we  have  already  seen 
him  doing  to  Timothy,  what  quahties  Titus  should 
require  in  one  who  was  to  be  ordained — "for  a 
Bishop  [elder  or  presbyter]  must  be  blameless,  as  a 
steward  of  God,  not  self-willed,  not  soon  angry," 
&c.f  And  he  afterwards  directs — "  a  man  that  is  an 
heretic,  after  the  first  and  second  admonition  [do  thoii\ 
reject."^  Here  is  certainly  full  Episcopal  authority 
— ordination — admonition — rejection  or  degradation — 
all  committed  to  Titus  personally.  We  know,  from 
history,  that  there  were  many  Churches  in  Crete. 
Why,  then,  when  the  field  was  the  world,  and  men 
were  so  much  wanted  to  publish  the  Gospel  else- 
where amid  the  darkness  of  heathenism,  was  Titus 
v.^ithdrawn  and  sent  to  spend  his  life  in  this  island,§ 
if  any  of  the  elders  there  could  ordain  as  well  as  he  ? 
or  allowing  that  at  first  there  were  not  enough  there 
for  that  purpose,  why  must  he  ordain  elders  in  every 
city  ?  After  doing  so  in  one  or  two  cities,  could  not 
they  be  left  to  keep  up  the  succession  ?  It  would  be 
difficult,  indeed,  to  find  an  answer  to  these  questions 
on  the  Presbyterian  scheme.     The  only  solution  is, 

•  Eusebius,  Chrysostom  and  Theodoret,  as  cited  above.     Jerome 
Catal.  Scrip,  in  Tit.  t  Titus  i.  5. 

t  iii    10.  §  Cave's  Lives  of  the  Fathers,  1.  1:8. 


EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  SCRIPTURE.         57 

that  Titus  could  ordain  by  right  of  his  authority  as 
Bishop,  and  the  others  could  not.  Yet  this  is  Episco- 
pacy. 

Let  us  now  turn  to  the  address  made  to  "  the 
angels  "  of  the  Seven  Churches  of  Asia.  In  each  of 
these  Churches — as,  for  example,  Ephesus  and  Smyr- 
na— history  tells  us  there  were  many  congregations 
and  Elders.  Yet  the  warnings  and  admonitions  are 
not  written  to  these  Elders,  nor  to  the  Church  collec- 
tively, but  to  the  "  angel  "  or  chief-officer.  There 
was  evidently  some  one  presiding  over  the  spiritual 
welfare  of  each  of  those  Churches,  who  was  held 
personally  answerable  for  it.  Look,  for  example,  at 
that  written  to  the  angel  of  the  Church  at  Ephesus. 
Here  we  find  that  in  the  year  96,*^  its  chief  officer  is 
evidently  exercising  the  same  discipline  over  the 
clergy,  in  investigating  and  rejecting  their  claims, 
which  was  ascribed  to  his  predecessor  Timothy, 
thirty  years  before.  The  address  to  him  is — ''Thou 
hast  tried  them  which  say  they  are  Apostles,  and 
are  not,  and  hast  found  them  liars."  And  so  it  is 
with  all  these  Churches.  "  I  know  thy  works,"  is  the 
announcement  to  the  ruler  of  each  one.  We  might 
copy  the  greater  part  of  the  second  and  third  chap- 
ters, in  proof  of  what  we  have  asserted.  "  And 
\thoii\  hast  borne,  and  hast  had  patience,  and  for  my 
name's  sake  \thoic\  hast  labored,  and  hast  not 
fainted  " — "  thoti  hast  left  thy  first  love  " — "  remem- 

•  St.  John  was  banished  to  Patmos  in  the  latter  part  of  Domitian's 
reign,  and  returned  to  Ephesus  upon  Nerva's  succeeding  to  the 
empire,  which  was  in  96.  This  book  was  written  while  still  in  the 
island.  Irenseus,  speaking  of  the  vision,  says—"  It  was  not  very 
long  ago  that  it  was  seen,  being  but  a  little  before  our  time,  at  the 
latter  end  of  Domitian's  reign." 


58        EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  SCRIPTURE. 

ber  from  whence  thou  art  fallen  " — "  thou  holdest  fast 
my  name  " — "  I  have  set  before  thee  an  open  door  " 
— '^  thou  hast  a  little  strength,  and  hast  kept  my 
word  " — "  I  have  a  few  things  against  thee  " — "  be- 
cause thou  hast  there,  them  that  hold  the  doctrine  of 
Balaam  " — "  thou  sufiferest  that  woman  Jezebel  .  .  to 
teach,"  &c. — "  if  thou  shalt  not  watch,  I  will  come 
on  thee  as  a  thief" — "  thou  art  neither  hot  nor  cold  " 
— "  be  [thou]  watchful  and  strengthen  [^thoi/]  the 
things  that  remain  " — "  hold  fast  that  which  thou 
hast."  And  such  is  the  tenor  of  these  seven  Epistles. 
There  is  no  intimation  any  where  given  that  the 
Elders  of  the  Churches  shared  in  this  responsi- 
bility, for  which  their  chief  ruler  is  so  pointedly 
addressed. 

That  these  seven  angels  were  the  Diocesan  Bishops 
of  the  Churches,  is  indeed  a  fact,  so  fully  proved 
from  early  history,  that  it  would  seem  to  be  almost 
beyond  contradiction.  All  the  early  fathers  assert  it. 
"  So  say  Irenaeus,  Clemens  of  Alexandria,  Eusebius, 
Ambrose,  and  others.  That  Polycarp  Avas  then 
Bishop  of  Smyrna,  is  testified  by  Irenaeus,  who  knew 
him  well ;  by  Ignatius ;  by  Polycrates,  Bishop  of 
Ephesus,  who  calls  him  Bishop  and  martyr  in 
Smyrna ;  by  Eusebius  ;  by  Tertullian ;  by  Jerome ; 
and  by  all  antiquity.  And  Ignatius  names  Onesimus 
as  Bishop  of  Ephesus,  when  he  wrote,  which  was 
but  about  twelve  years  after  the  inditing  of 
these  Epistles.  It  being  then  so  evident,  that  one  of 
those  to  whom  St.  John  writes,  under  the  name  of 
Augel,  was  Polycarp,  Bishop  of  Smyrna,  and,  most 
probably,  another,  Onesimus,  Bishop  of  Ephesus,  we 
may  be  sure  that  all  the  rest  were  Bishops  of  their 


EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM   SCRIPTURE.         59 

respective  Churches,  as  well  as  Polycarp  and  Onesi- 
mus."'" 

So  evident  indeed  is  this  truth,  that  some  of  the 
leading  writers  on  the  Presbyterian  side  of  the  ques- 
tion have  felt  themselves  obliged  to  acknowledge  it. 
Such  is  the  case  with  the  learned  Blondel,  in  his 
"Apology,"  which  was  written  at  the  earnest  request 
of  the  Westminster  Assembly  of  Divines.  He  con- 
tends that  the  Angels  of  these  Seven  Churches  were 
"  exarchs  or  chief  governors,"  who  were  superior  in 
office  to  the  other  clergy,  holding  their  places  for  hfe, 
and  indeed  so  superior,  that  "  the  acts  of  the  Church, 
whether  glorious  or  infamous,  were  imputed  to  those 
exarchs."  And  this,  he  says,  is  necessary  to  be 
maintained,  otherwise  the  difficulties  are  insuperable. 

So  also  Dr.  Campbell,  President  of  Marischal 
College,  Aberdeen,  is  forced  to  make  concessions, 
from  which  he  evidently  shrinks.  He  remarks — 
"  But  one  person,  called  the  Angel  of  that  Church, 
is  addressed  in  the  name  of  the  whole.  .  .  .  Shall  we 
affirm,  that  by  the  angel  is  meant  the  Presbytery  ?" 
With  this  interpretation,  he  declares  himself  dis- 
satisfied. He  concludes,  at  last,  that  it  means  one 
who  had  a  kind  of  presidency  over  the  rest,  derived 
from  the  model  of  the  Jewish  Sanhedrim.f  So  diffi- 
cult is  it  to  evade  the  natural  explanation,  or  rather, 
so  eager  are  men  to  adopt  any  theory  which  may 
enable  them  to  escape  the  argument,  that  in  the 
Apostolic  days  each  Church  had  its  chief  ruler.:}: 

♦  Dr.  Bowden's  Letters,  Vol  I.  p.  118. 

t  Campbell's  Lect.  on  Eccles.  Hist.,  Lect,  V.  p.  82. 

\  Dr.  Miller  of  Princeton,  in  his  despair,  has  resorted  to  the  amus- 
ing explanation  that  the  Angel  was  only  the  Moderator  of  the  Pres- 
bytery.    We  .cannot  forbear  giving  Dr.  Bowden's  reply  to  this  theory. 


6o  EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  SCRIPTURE. 

There  is  but  one  more  fact  which  we  will  briefly 
notice.  It  is,  as  we  have  already  mentioned,  a 
favorite  declaration  of  our  opponents  that  the  thirteen 
Apostles  were  the  only  ones  holding  that  office,  and 
that  they  left  no  successors.  And  yet  we  find  St. 
Paul  referring  to  "false  apostles "  (^/^ef (Jar  noaro- 
Aoz.)*  There  were  therefore  some,  •  even  in  his  day, 
who  assumed  that  office,  and  pretended  they  were 
called  to  the  highest  rank  in  the  ministry.  Now,  as 
we  cannot  suppose  that  they  endeavored  to  pass 
themselves  off  for  any  of  the  thirteen  who  were  first 
called,  t  it  is  evident  that  the  office  itself  must  have 

"  When  our  Lord  blamed  and  threatened  the  Angel  of  the  Church  of 
Sardis,  might  he  not  have  said,  '  Lord,  why  blamest  tliou  me  ?  I  have 
no  more  authority  in  thy  Church  in  this  city  than  other  Presbyters. 
We  do  everything,  as  thou  well  knowest,  by  a  plurality  of  votes,  and 
those  Presbyters  who  wish  for  a  majority,  for  the  purpose  of  beginning 
the  work  of  reformation,  have  not  yet  been  able  to  obtain  it.  I  need 
not  tell  thee,  that  I  am  no  more  than  the  Moderator  of  the  Presbytery, 
appointed  to  count  their  votes  and  keep  order.  Upon  what  dictate, 
then,  of  reason,  upon  what  principle  of  justice,  am  I  to  be  blamed  for 
the  defects  and  corruptions  in  the  Church  ?  As  a  Moderator,  I  have 
no  relation  whatever  to  the  Church ;  my  relation  is  entirely  to  the 
Presbytery,  and  there  I  have  but  a  casting  vote.  What  then  can  I 
do  ?  Why  am  I  addressed  in  particular,  and  threatened  with  exci- 
sion, unless  I  repent  ?  For  my  personal  faults,  1  humbly  beg  forgive- 
ness ;  but  I  cannot  possibly  acknowledge  awy  guilt  as  the  governor  of 
this  Church,  when  I  bear  no  such  character.'  Might  not  the  Angel  of 
Sardis  have  addressed  Christ  with  the  strictest  propriety  in  this  man- 
ner ?  And  does  not  this  show  how  utterly  inconsistent  your  scheme 
of  Church  government  is  with  these  Epistles?" — Letters,  Vol.  I.  p. 
117. 

*  2  Cor.  xi.  13. 

t  Bishop  H.  U.  Onderdonk  has  thus  clearly  illustrated  this  point. 
"  That  it  was  infinitely  improbable  that  the  '  false  apostles '  pretended 
to  be  of  the  original  twelve  or  thirteen,  will  appear  from  such  consid- 
erations as  these  : — There  are  sixteen  of  our  Bishops  in  the  United 
States  [this  was  written  in  1835],  but  never  has  it  been  attempted  to 
counterfeit  the  person  of  any  of  them,  either  at  home  or  abroad.     So 


EPISCOPACY    PROVED    FROM   SCRIPTURE.        6 1 

been  widely  known  in  the  Church,  and  tlieir  pretence 
was,  that  they  had  received  it.  Still  stronger  is  the 
inference  which  may  be  drawn  from  that  warning 
which  St.  John  gives  against  "  them  which  say  they 
are  Apostles,  and  are  not."*  At  this  time  St.  John 
was  well  known  to  be  the  sole  survivor  of  the  thirteen. 
Could  any  impostor,  therefore,  have  attempted  to 
counterfeit  the  person  of  one  of  his  colleagues  who 
had  been  invested  with  that  office  by  our  Lord 
Himself?  The  want  of  age  would  at  once  have 
revealed  the  deception.  At  this  time  more  than 
sixty  years  had  passed  since  our  Lord's  ascension, 
and  he  who  was  once  the  youngest  of  that  little  band, 
was  now  among  them  in  the  feebleness  of  extreme 
old  age.  St.  John,  too,  would,  in  that  case,  have 
stated,  that  no  Apostle  but  himself  was  then  living, 
and  this  would  have  set  all  such  claims  at  rest  for- 

of  the  twenty-six  Bishops  and  Archbishops  in  England— of  the  nine- 
teen Bishops  and  Archbishops  in  Ireland — and  of  the  six  Bi:>hops  in 
Scotland.  We  may  add  the  same  remark,  as  far  as  we  recollect,  of  all 
the  Bishops  in  the  Christian  world.  Persons  have  feigned  to  be  Bishops, 
as  in  the  case  of  West,  and  perhaps  the  Greek  mentioned  in  the 
accounts  of  Mr.  Wesley  ;  but  none  have  counterfeited  the  persons  of 
other  Bishops — if  otherwise,  the  cases  are  so  rare  and  so  obscure,  as 
not  to  affect  this  illustration  of  our  argument.  What  the  impostors 
mentioned  in  Scripture  claimed,  was,  to  be  apostles  or  bishops  in  their 
own  persons,  not  in  the  persons  of  any  of  the  thirteen.  Of  course,  the 
Apostleship  was  not  confined  to  these  last. 

*'  Our  fellow-citizens  generally  will  perhaps  see  more  clearly  the 
force  of  this  analogy  in  another  case.  There  are  twenty-four  gover- 
nors of  States  in  our  Union.  In  no  instance  has  it  occurred  that  any 
man  has  pretended  to  be  one  of  these.  The  same  may  probably  be 
said  of  all  our  magistrates  of  the  higher  grades.  So  clear  is  it,  that 
the  '  false  apostles '  would  not  have  pretended  to  be  of  the  original 
thirteen  who  held  that  office — and  so  clear,  that  others  besides  the 
thirteen  were  made  Apostles — many  others." — Episcopacy  Examined, 
p.  275. 

*  Rev.  ii.  2. 


62        EPISCOPACY  PROVED    FROM    SCRIPTURE. 

ever.  This  very  attempt,  then,  shows  that  there 
were  many  apostles  besides  the  original  thirteen,  and 
that  the  Apostolic  office  itself  was  extensively  recog- 
nized in  the  Church.  These  passages  alone,  there- 
fore, refute  the  Presbyterian  argument,  that  the 
office  expired  with  its  original  holders. 

Let  us  now,  before  closing  this  subject,  briefly 
notice  some  of  the  usual  objections  advanced  by 
those  who  differ  from  us. 

I.  One  is — that  Paul  and  Barnabas  received  an  or- 
dination only  from  Presbyters.  In  the  beginning  of 
Acts  xiii.  is  this  passage :  "  Now,  there  were  in  the 
Church  that  was  at  Antioch,  certain  prophets  and  teach- 
ers; as  Barnabas,  and  Simeon  that  was  called  Niger, 
and  Lucius  of  Cyrenc,  and  Manaen,  which  had  been 
brought  up  with  Herod  the  Tetrarch,  and  Saul.  As 
they  ministered  to  the  Lord  and  fasted,  the  Holy 
Ghost  said,  Separate  me  Barnabas  and  Saul  for  the 
work  whercunto  I  have  called  them.  And  when 
they  had  fasted  and  prayed,  and  laid  their  hands  on 
them,  they  sent  them  away."  This,  we  are  told,  was 
their  ordination.  We  reply — this  could  not  be,  for 
they  were  "  prophets  and  teachers "  before,  and 
employed  in  "  ministering  to  the  Lord."  They  are 
placed  on  an  exact  footing  with  the  other  three. 
If  tlie  three,  therefore,  were  in  orders,  so  were  Paul 
and  Barnabas.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  Paul  and 
Barnabas  were  laymen,  then  the  other  three  were 
also,  and  if  an  ordination  at  all,  it  was  performed  by 
laymen.  These  two  brethren  were,  in  truth,  in  this 
way  merely  commended  to  a  special  missionary 
work  on  which  tkey  immediately  set  out,  and  at  the 
completion    of  which  we  are  explicitly  told — "  And 


EFISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  SCRIPTURE.         63 

thence  they  sailed  to  Antioch,  from  whence  they  had 
been  recoimnended  to  the  grace  of  God  for  the  ivork 
ivhicJi  they  fulfilled."*  St.  Paul  himself  disclaims 
any  human  ordination,  and  says,  that  he  is  "  an 
Apostle,  not  of  men,  neither  by  man,  but  by  Jesus 
Christ  and  God  the  Father,  "f  He  had,  indeed, 
previous  to  this,  been  on  a  mission  to  Tarsus  and 
Cilicia  (Acts  ix.  30,  and  Gal.  i.  21),  where,  as  Prof. 
Burton  has  shown,:|:  he  founded  the  Churches  which 
he  afterwards  (Acts  xv.  41)  revisited  in  company 
with  Barnabas.  Bishop  Whittingham  has  well  com- 
pared this  transaction  in  Acts  xiii.  to  "  a  farewell 
missionary  meeting,  in  which  persons,  previously 
ordained  presbyters  or  bishops,  receive  jurisdiction 
in  the  m-ission  to  which  they  have  been  appointed.  "§ 
II.  Again,  it  is  said — Timothy  did  not  receive  Epis- 
copal ordination.  This  inference  is  drawn  from  St. 
Paul's  address  to  him — "  Neglect  not  the  gift  that  is 
in  thee,  which  was  given  thee  by  prophecy,  with  the 
laying  on  of  the  hands  of  \S\q  presbytery. \  Timothy, 
therefore,  we  are  told,  was  ordained  to  his  office  in 
the  ministry  by  the  hands  of  a  body  of  Elders.  We 
reply — first,  it  is  not  clear,  by  any  means,  that  the 
word  here  translated  presbytery  does  not  refer  to  the 
ofiice  conferred,  and  not  to  the  persons  who  conferred 
it.  In  that  case  it  would  read  thus — "  with  the  lay- 
ing on  of  hands  to  confer  the  presbyterate  or  presby- 
tership."  Such  was  the  opinion  of  Jerome,  Ambrose, 
Eusebius,    and   Socrates,    among   the   ancients,   and 

*  Acts  xiv.  26.  t  Gal.  i.  i. 

X  Lect.  on  Hist,  of  Ch.  in  first  Cent.  p.  135,  147,  158. 
§  Note  to  Palmer's  Treatise  on  the  Ch.  v.  ii,  p.  391. 
II   I  Tim.  iv.  14. 


64        EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  SCRIPTURE. 

Grotius,  Calvin,  and  many  of  the  leading  Presbyterian 
writers,  among  the  moderns.* 

But,  second,  even  allowing  that  it  does  refer  to 
persons,  we  find  St.  Paul,  in  another  place,  claiming 
Timothy's  ordination  as  performed  by  himself.  He 
writes  to  him — "  Stir  up  the  gift  of  God,  which  is  in 
thee  by  the  putting  on  of  my  hands,  "f  We  can 
easily,  however,  reconcile  the  two  passages.  It  has 
been  customary,  in  all  ages  of  the  Church,  when  a 
Bishop  laid  his  hands  upon  the  head  of  an  individual 
to  elevate  him  to  the  office  of  the  priesthood,  that 
Presbyters  who  were  there  should  unite  with  him  in 
that  act,  in  token  of  their  concurrence.  Might  not 
this  have  been  the  case  at  Timothy's  ordination  ?  St. 
Paul  conferred  that  office  on  him,  the  presbyters  also 
"  laying  on  their  hands."  If  we  critically  examine 
these  two  passages,  we  shall  find  that  the  words 
selected  clearly  point  out  the  different  shares  of  the 
ordaining  apostle  and  the  consenting  presbyters. 
He  was  ordained,  St.  Paul  tells  us,  "  by  {Sia)  the  put- 
ting on  of  my  hands,"  "  tvith  (//sr^)  the  laying  on 
of  the  hands  of  the  presbytery."  Such  is  the  ac- 
knowledgment of  Dr.  Macknight,  the  Presbyterian 
commentator,  when  discussing  this  text.  He  says — 
"  Since  it  appears,  from  2  Tim.  i.  6,  that  the  Apostle, 
by  the  imposition  of  his  own  hands,  conferred  on 
Timothy  the  spiritual  gift  here  mentioned,  we  must 
suppose  that  the  eldership  at  Lystra  laid  their  hands 
on  him  only  to  shoiv  their  cojicurrence  with  the  Apos- 

*  See  many  of  these  quoted  by  Bishop  Onderdonk,  in  Episcopacy 
Examined,  p.  19-22,  193-196.  Dr.  Miller,  finding  his  great  authority, 
Calvin,  against  him  on  this  point,  says,  that  for  interpreting  the  word 
office,  "he  deserves  nothing  but  ridicule."    (P.  58,  ist  Edit.) 

t  2  Tim.  i.  6. 


EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM   SCRIPTURE.         65 

tie    in   setting   Timothy   apart   to   the    ministry   by 
prayer." 

III.  Again,  another  objection  is — tJiat  Deacons  zvere 
not  in  the  ministry,  but  merely  laymen  appointed  to 
distribute  the  contributions  made  for  the  poor.*  In 
reply,  we  say,  first,  that  the  whole  testimony  of 
Scripture  is  against  this  view.  If  this  had  been  only 
a  secular  office,  why  did  they  require,  not  merely 
integrity,  honesty,  and  piety,  but  the  highest  spiritual 
qualifications  ?  They  were  to  be  "  men  full  of  t/te 
Holy  Ghost  and  of  wisdom^"  and  Stephen  is  de- 
scribed as  a  man  "full  of  faith  and  of  the  Holy 
Ghost."  This  requirement  of  the  noblest  gifts  seems 
to  point  to  something  more  elevated  than  the  mere 
distribution  of  alms,  in  which  there  would  be  no 
field  for  the  exercise  of  such  lofty  qualities.  The 
same  inference  may  be  drawn  from  the  First  Epistle 
to  Timothy,  where  the  Apostle  instructs  him  in  the 
quahfications  necessary  for  that  office,  one  of  which 
is — "  holding  the  mystery  of  the  faith  in  a  good 
conscience." 

*  We  copy  the  following  passage  from  a  Review  of  Episcopacy 
tested  by  Scripture,  in  the  Biblical  Repository.  "It  is  plain  that  the 
'order  of  deacons,' as  one  of  the  '  three  orders  of  clergy'  for  which 
our  Episcopal  brethren  contend,  cannot  stand  the  test  of  Scripture. 
It  must  undoubtedly  be  given  up,  if  we  would  be  governed  by  the 
Word  of  God.  Deacons  there  undoubtedly  were  in  the  Apostolic 
Church  ;  but  they  were  evidently  curators  of  the  poor,  and  attendants 
on  the  tables  of  the  Church  ;  precisely  such  as  were  found  in  the 
Jewish  synagogues,  before  the  coming  of  Christ,  and  sucli  as  are  found 
in  all  completely  organized  Presbyterian  churches  at  the  present  day. 
And  this  continued  to  be  the  nature  of  the  office  for  several  hundred 
years  after  the  Apostolic  age.  But  when  a  spirit  of  carnal  ambition 
began  to  reign  in  the  Church,  and  led  ecclesiastical  men  to  aspire  and 
encroach,  deacons  invaded  the  province  of  preachers,  and  committed 
to  'sub-deacons  '  the  burthen  of  their  primitive  duties." 

5 


66  EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  SCRIPTURE. 

But,  second,  we  learn  their  ministerial  character 
also  from  the  duties  they  performed.  As  soon  as 
Stephen  was  ordained,  we  are  told  that,  "  full  of  faith 
and  power,  he  did  great  wonders  and  miracles  among 
the  people,"  and  that  he  preached  also,  is  evident 
from  the  fact  that  his  enemies  first  disputed  with  him 
(vi.  9),  and  then  "  suborned  men,  which  said,  we 
have  heard  him  speak  blasphemous  words  against 
Moses,  and  against  God"  (vi.  11).  Similar  to  this 
was  the  conduct  of  Philip,  another  of  the  newly- 
ordained  deacons.  After  the  persecution  in  Jerusa- 
lem, he  "  went  down  to  the  city  of  Samaria,  and 
preached  Christ  unto  them  (viii.  5).  "  And  they 
believed  Philip,  preaching  the  things  concerning  the 
kingdom  of  God,  and  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ," 
(viii.  12).  He  afterwards  went  to  Arotus,  and 
'^  preached  \n  all  the  cities,  till  he  came  to  Cesarea," 
(viii.  40).  You  perceive,  then,  how  utterly  unfounded 
is  the  assertion  (which  we  have  just  quoted  from  the 
Biblical  Repository),  that  it  was  "  several  hundred 
years  after  the  Apostolic  age,"  before  deacons  began 
to  preach,  or,  as  it  is  there  expressed,  "  to  invade  the 
province  of  preachers."  Deacons  also  baptized. 
Philip  "baptized"  those  at  Samaria,  "who  believed, 
both  men  and  women"  (viii.  12).  He  baptized 
Simon  Magus  (viii.  13),  and  afterwards  the  Eunuch 
of  Ethiopia  (viii.  38).  Here,  then,  we  find  them 
preaching  and  baptizing.  Are  these  the  duties  of  a 
layman  ?* 

*  We  consider  the  above  examples  amply  sufficient  to  refute  the 
objection  advanced  against  the  ministerial  character  of  deacons,  and 
as  the  lecture  is  intended  to  prove  our  positions  from  Scripture,  we 
have  drawn  our  evidence  from  this  source  alone.  We  add,  however, 
in  this  note  a  few  extracts  from  the  early  fathers,  showing  the  view  of 


EPISCOPACY    PROVED    FROM   SCRIPTURE.        67 

Now,  it  is  precisely  on  this  model — to  discharge 
the  duties  of  the  primitive  deacons — that  these  minis- 
ters are  ordained  in  our  Church  at  this  day.  Let  us 
see  the  statement  made  in  the  ordinal  to  the  Prayer 
Book,  and  compare  it  with  the  record  of  the  early 
Church.  We  are  told — "  It  appertaineth  to  the 
office  of  a  Deacon,  in  the  Church  where  he  shall  be 
appointed  to  serve,  to  assist  the  priest  in  divine 
service,  and  specially  when  he  ministereth  the  Holy 
Communion,  and  to  help  him  in  the  distribution 
thereof"  This,  Bingham  tells  us,  was  anciently  their 
duty,  as  he  shows  from  the  Apostolical  Constitutions 
and   Jerome,    that   they    should    read    parts   of    the 

the  Church  in  that  day.  Polycarp  says,  that  Deacons  are  "  ministers 
of  God,  not  of  men  "  (sect.  5).  Ignatius,  in  his  epistle  to  the  Mag- 
nesians,  says — "Deacons  are  entrusted  with  the  ministry  of  Jesus 
Christ "  (sect.  6).  In  the  Epist.  to  the  Trallians,  he  says,  "  Deacons 
are  the  ministers  of  the  mysteries  of  Jesus  Christ  ...  for  they  are  not 
the  ministers  of  meat  and  drink  [that  is,  of  this  only],  but  of  the 
Church  of  God  "  (sect.  2).  The  following  passage  is  his  Epist.  to 
Philad.  is  conclusive.  Speaking  of  his  bereaved  Church  at  Antioch, 
he  says — "It  will  become  you,  as  the  Church  of  God,  to  ordain  some 
deacon  to  go  to  them  thither  as  the  embassador  of  God ;  that  he  may 
rejoice  with  them  when  they  meet  together,  and  glorify  God's  name. 
Blessed  be  that  man  in  Jesus  Christ,  who  shall  be  found  worthy  oisuch 
a  ministry  "  (sect.  10). 

Tertullian  declares — "The  highest  priest,  who  is  the  bishop,  has 
the  right  of  baptizing.  After  him,  the  presbyters  and  deacons,  not 
however,  without  the  permission  of  the  bishop,  on  account  of  the 
honor  of  the  Church." — Cookers  Inval.  of  Pres,  Ord.  §  183. 

The  74th  Apostolic  Canon  says — "Let  a  bishop,  or  presbyter,  or 

deacon,  engaged  in  war be  deposed."     But  if  a  deacon  was 

merely  a  layman,  to  discharge  duties  like  our  churchwardens,  why 
might  he  not  engage  in  war  ?  This  canon  evidently  shows  that  there 
was  a  sacredness  in  his  office  which  had  a  ministerial  character. 

Bingham,  in  his  Grig.  Eccles.  lib.  ii.  ch.  20,  has  given  a  full  discus- 
sion of  this  subject,  with  an  account  of  the  duties  discharged  by  dea- 
cons in  the  early  church. 


68        EPISCOPACY    PROVED    FROM    SCRIPTURE. 

service.*  They  were  not  allowed  to  consecrate  the 
Euchanst,t  but  only  to  assist  in  its  distribution. if  And 
in  the  Constitutions  there  is  one  passage  which  de- 
clares it  to  be  the  office  of  the  Bishop  to  deliver  the 
bread  to  each  communicant,  and  that  of  the  Deacon 
to  deliver  the  cup.§  The  same  rule  which  we  now 
have. 

The  ordinal  continues — "  and  to  read  Holy  Scrip- 
tures and  Homilies  in  the  Church."  In  early  times, 
it  was  the  Deacon's  duty  always  to  read  the  Gospel, 
and,  in  some  churches,  other  parts  of  Scripture ;  and 
the  Council  of  Vaison  authorized  Deacons  to  read 
the  Homilies  of  the  ancient  Fathers  in  the  absence  of 
a  Presbyter,  assigning  this  reason  for  it :  "  If  the 
Deacons  be  worthy  to  read  the  Discourses  of  Christ 
in  the  Gospel,  why  should  they  not  be  tKought 
worthy  to  read  the  expositions  of  the  ancient  Fa- 
thers ?'l 

"  And  to  instruct  the  youth  in  the  Catechism." 
In  the  early  Church  there  was  a  distinct  office  of 
Catechist,  the  duty  appertaining  to  which  was,  that 
of  instructing  the  Catechumens  in  the  first  principles 
of  religion,  and  preparing  them  for  the  reception  of 
baptism.  This  office  was,  however,  sometimes  filled 
by  a  Deacon.  Thus,  St.  Augustine  wrote  his  book 
De  Catechizandis  Rtidibiis,  at  the  request  of  Deogra- 
tias,  Deacon  of  Carthage,  who  was  a  Catechist  there, 
to  assist  him  in  the  performance  of  his  duties.^f 

"  In  the  absence  of  the  priest,  to  baptize  infants.'' 
We  have  already  seen  that  Philip  the  Deacon  baptized 

•  Orig.  Eccles.  lib.  ii.  ch.  20.  sec,  6.  f  Ibid.  sec.  8. 

X  Ibid.  sec.  7.  §  Constit.  Apost.  lib.  viii.  c.  13. 

II  Bing.  lib.  ii.  ch.  20.  IT  Ibid.  lib.  iii.  ch.  10,  sec.  I. 


EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  SCRIPTURE.         69 

at  Samaria,  and  elsewhere.  TertuIHan  too,  in  the 
passage  wc  quoted  in  the  note,  shows  that  they  have 
the  right,  "but  not  without  the  permission  of  the 
Bishop."  Bingham  proves  the  same  thing  from  St 
Cyril  and  Jerome.* 

And  "  to  preach,  if  he  be  admitted  thereto  by  the 
Bishop."  We  have  also  shown  our  warrant  for  this 
from  Scripture.  "  They  had  power  to  preach,"  says 
Bingham,  by  license  and  a-utliority  from  the  Bishop, 
but  not  without  it."  Many  proofs  of  which  he 
records.f 

"  And  furthermore  it  is  his  office,  where  provision 
is  so  made,  to  search  for  the  sick,  poor,  and  impotent 
peopk  of  the  parish,  to  intimate  their  estates,  names, 
and  places  where  they  dwell,  unto  the  Curate,  that 
by  his  exhortation  they  may  be  relieved  by  the  alms 
of  the  parishioners."  Here  also  we  closely  follow 
Scripture.  We  find  too  in  the  Apostolical  Constitu- 
tions it  is  mentioned  as  part  of  the  duty  of  a  Deacon 
— "  That  he  should  inform  his  Bishop,  when  he 
knows  any  one  to  be  in  distress,  and  then  distribute 
to  their  necessities  by  the  directions  of  the  Bishop.":}: 

Such  were  the  deacons  of  Scripture  and  the  Primi- 
tive Church.  From  the  view  given,  we  must  leave 
it  to  our  readers  to  decide,  whether  or  not  they  were 
admitted  to  the  ministry,  and  which  bear  the  closest 
resemblance  to  the  deacons  of  Apostolic  times  — 
those  ordained  to  the  office  in  our  Church,  by  the 
form  from  which  we  have  just  quoted — or  the  lay- 
men called  by  that  name  in  the  different  denomina- 
tions around  us. 

*  Ibid.  lib.  ii.  ch.  20,  sec.  9.  f  Ibid.  sec.  ix. 

\  Constit.  Apos.  lib.  iii.  c.  19. 


70        EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  SCRIPTURE. 

IV.  Another  objection  is — that  the  proof  of  Epis- 
copacy ivhicJi  we  derive  fj'om  Scripture  is  incidental 
in  its  character.  This  is  true;  but  in  reply,  we 
would  say,  there  are  two  reasons  why  the  testimony 
is  of  this  nature.  The  first  is  because  we  find  it 
principally  in  Epistles,  where  things  are  not  gene- 
rally so  formally  stated,  but  much  is  left  to  be  sup- 
plied by  the  previous  knowledge  of  the  one  who 
receives  the  Epistle.  Mr.  Locke,  when  referring  to 
another  subject,  has  well  stated  this  point — "  The 
nature  of  Epistolary  writings  in  general,  disposes  the 
writer  to  pass  by  the  mentioning  many  things,  as 
well  known  to  him  to  whom  his  letter  is  addressed, 
which  are  necessary  to  be  laid  open  to  a  stranger,  to 
make  him  comprehend  what  is  said ;  and  it  not  sel- 
dom falls  out,  that  a  well-penned  letter,  which  is 
very  easy  and  intelligible  to  the  receiver,  is  very 
obscure  to  a  stranger,  who  hardly  knows  what  to 
make  of  it  The  matters  St  Paul  wrote  about,  were 
certainly  things  well  known  to  those  he  wrote  to,  and 
which  they  had  a  peculiar  concern  in ;  which  made 
them  easily  apprehend  his  meanmg,  and  see  the  ten- 
dency and  force  of  his  discourse.  But  we,  having 
now,  at  this  distance  of  time,  no  information  of  the 
occasion  of  his  writing,  little  or  no  knowledge  of  the 
temper  and  circumstances  those  were  in  he  wrote  to, 
but  what  is  to  be  gathered  out  of  the  Epistles  them- 
selves ;  it  is  not  strange  that  many  things  in  them  He 
concealed  to  us,  which,  no  doubt,  they  who  were 
concerned  in  the  letter,  understood  at  first  sight"* 

*Essay  for  the  iinderstanding  of  St.  PauPs  Epistles,  Works,  v, 
iii.  p.  I02.  We  find  the  following  excellent  familiar  illustration  of 
this  point  in  Ckapin's  Prim.  Church.  "  We  will  suppose  a  man,  bom 
and  educated  in  one  of  the  South  Sea  Islands,  who  has  grown   up 


EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM   SCRIPTURE.         71 

The  second  reason  for  our  gleaning  this  merely 
from  incidental  allusioni,  arises  from  the  fact,  tiiat  all 
the  instructions  of  our  Lord  and  His  Apostles  were 
of  course  not  fully  written  out.  The  inspired  men  to 
whom  this  work  was  committed,  recorded  only  great 
general  truths.  Had  they  pursued  a  different  course, 
"  even  the  world  itself  could  not  contain  the  books 
tliat  should  be  written."'*  And  it  is  evident  why 
this  particular  truth — the  Apostolic  succession — is 
only  mentioned  incidentally.  It  is  because  at  that 
time  it  was  not  controverted.  There  is  therefore 
only  an  occasional  allusion  to  it  as  an  established 
regulation.  It  is  precisely  in  the  same  way  that  we 
learn,  females  are  to  be  admitted  to  the  Eucharist,  or 
that  the  observance  of  the  Sabbath  is  changed  from 
the  seventh  day  to  the  first.  Many  who  receive  and 
believe  the  latter  truth,  profess  to  trace  it  to  Scripture, 

without  any  communication  with,  or  knowledge  of,  any  civilized 
nation.  Put  into  the  hands  of  such  a  man,  the  Military  Correspon- 
defice  of  General  Washington,  during  the  American  Revolution,  and 
require  him,  from  that  alone,  to  determine  the  organization  of  the 
American  army  ;  and  you  would  certainly  impose  upon  him  a  task  af 
no  small  magnitude.  .  .  .  Yet  such  a  man,  under  such  circumstances, 
would  be  situated  very  much  as  we  are  when  attempting  to  determine 
the  entire  constitution  of  the  Apostolic  Church,  from  Scripture  only. 
This  will  be  evident  upon  slight  reflection;  for  it  will  not  be  believed 
for  a  moment,  that  General  Washington,  when  writing  to  men  who 
were  as  familiar  with  the  organization  of  the  army  as  himself,  would 
enter  into  a  detail  of  facts,  with  which  he  knew  them  to  be  perfectly 
conversant  ;  nor  is  there  any  greater  reason  for  believing  that  the 
Apostles  would  give  a  detailed  account  of  the  organization  and  order 
of  the  Churches  they  had  established,  when  writing  to  the  members 
of  those  very  Churches.  The  nature  of  the  evidence  in  the  two  cases 
is  therefore  similar;  and  what  would  b:  proof  of  the  constitution  of 
the  American  army,  to  a  South  Sea  Islander  situated  as  we  have 
supposed,  must  be  proof  to  us  of  the  constitution  of  the  Apostolic 
Church." — pp.  20,  21. 
•  Tohn  xxi.  25. 


72  EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  SCRIPTURE. 

and  yet  reject  the  doctrine  of  the  Apostohc  succes- 
sion, which  is  estabhshed  there  with  double  the 
evidence. 

V.  Another  objection  is — that  the  first  Apostles 
only  zvere  appointed  to  their  office  by  the  extraordinary 
designation  of  the  Son  of  God.  We  are  told  that 
obedience  was  for  this  reason  due  to  them,  but  even 
if  they  had  handed  down  their  office,  their  successors 
would  not  have  the  same  claim  from  the  want 
of  this  miraculous  sanction  to  their  authority.  In 
reply,  we  would  ask,  what  there  is  which  is  not  at  its 
commencement  miraculous,  and  yet  in  its  continuance 
loses  this  character?  Would  not  this  objection  have 
applied  with  equal  force  to  the  Jewish  High  Priest  ? 
The  first  who  held  that  office  was  miraculously  ap- 
pointed, but  afterwards  it  was  left  to  be  handed  down 
by  the  succession  of  human  instruments.  Yet  who 
doubts  that  the  last  who  ministered  at  the  altar  had 
every  claim  to  reverence  which  Aaron  himself  pos- 
sessed fifteen  centuries  before  ?  On  this  point  we 
will  quote  the  striking  analogy  used  to  illustrate  it, 
by  one  of  our  own  Bishops. 

"The  beginning  of  the  grass  in  the  field  was 
miraculous — by  the  instant  and  immediate  mandate 
of  God.  It  was  created  in  full  maturity.  But  its 
succession  was  provided  for  by  no  such  measure. 
The  grass,  and  the  herb,  and  the  fruit  tree  were 
furnished  with  the  means  of  a  succession,  by  ordinary 
laws,  each  having  '  seed  in  itself  after  its  kind.'  Thus 
also  with  man.  The  head  of  the  human  race  was 
created  by  the  immediate  hand  of  God ;  but  the 
succession  from  that  moment  to  the  end  of  time,  was 
provided  for  by  laws  of  ordinary   nature.     But  we 


EPISCOPACY   PROVED    FROM   SCRIPTURE.        73 

hold  it  to  be  no  arrogance  to  say  of  any  man,  though 
the  lowest  of  his  kind,  that  he  has  succeeded  to  the 
nature  of  the  miraculously  created  first  man  ;  nor  to 
say  of  the  herb  of  the  field,  that  though  it  be  but  the 
offspring  of  the  little,  familiar  seed  in  the  ground, 
which  sprang  and  grew  by  an  ordinary  law,  and  a 
human  planting  and  rearing,  it  is,  nevertheless,  in  all 
the  essentials  of  its  nature,  the  successor,  in  an  un- 
broken line  of  descent,  of  the  herb  which  on  the  third 
day  of  the  world  sprang  into  maturity  at  the  won- 
derful fiat  of  the  Almighty.  I  know  not  that  the 
man  or  the  herb  is  any  less  a  man  or  an  herb,  or  any 
less  descended  from  the  miraculous  beginnings  of  the 
creation,  because  the  laws  of  growth  were  but  ordi- 
nary, and  the  intermediate  agency  of  production  was 
but  human.  And  so  I  know  not  that  a  minister  of 
the  Gospel  is  any  the  less  a  successor  of  the  first 
Apostles,  because,  instead  of  receiving  his  authority, 
like  them,  immediately  from  Christ,  it  has  come  to 
him  by  the  intermediate  communication  of  a  chain, 
fastened  at  its  beginning  upon  the  throne  of  God,  and 
preserved  as  inviolate  as  the  line  of  the  descent  of 
Adam,  or  the  succession  of  seed-time  and  harvest,  of 
day  and  night,  of  summer  and  winter.  I  know  not 
that  tliis  day  is  not  a  true  day,  and  strictly  a  succes- 
sor of  that  very  day  when  first  the  sun  appeared  ; 
though  that,  you  know,  was  made  by  the  sudden 
act  of  God  suspending  the  sun  in  the  skies,  and  this 
arose  by  the  ordinary  succession  of  the  evening  and  the 
morning.  The  beginning  of  every  institution  of  God 
must  of  necessity  be  extraordinary ;  its  regular  con- 
tinuance, ordinary.  So  with  the  course  of  Providence, 
in  all  its  branches.     What  is  now  an  ordinary  Prov- 


74        EFISCOPACY   PROVED    FROM    SCRIPTURE. 

idence  was  once  an  extraordinary.  What  began  with 
miracle,  is  continued  by  laws  of  familiar  nature.  And 
so  it  is  with  the  ministry  of  the  Gospel.  What  was 
created  by  the  direct  ordination  of  God,  is  propagated 
and  continued  by  the  authorized  ordination  of  men. 
Its  'seed  is  in  itself,  after  its  kind,'  and  at  every  step 
of  the  succession  it  is  precisely  the  same  ministry,  and 
just  as  much  of  God,  sanctioned  by  His  authority, 
and  sustained  by  His  power,  as  if  it  had  been  re- 
ceived from  the  laying  on  of  the  hands  of  Christ 
Himself  And  so  with  the  office  of  the  Apostles. 
It  was  the  promise  of  Christ  the  Lord  that  it  should 
continue  to  the  end  of  the  world.  It  is  not  more 
sure  that  sun  and  moon,  seed-time  and  harvest,  will 
continue  to  the  end  of  the  world  ;  and  though  its 
succession  be  now  in  the  hands  of  very  feeble  and 
fallible  men — of  men  unspeakably  inferior  to  the 
Apostles  in  every  personal  and  official  qualification ; 
yea,  though  many  Iscariots  be  found  under  its  awful 
responsibilities,  the  integrity  of  tJie  officCy  as  essentially 
identical  with  that  of  the  Apostles,  is  in  no  wise 
affected."* 

Here  then  is  a  brief  view  of  the  argument  for 
Episcopacy  as  derived  from  Scripture.  We  contend, 
indeed,  that  the  whole  tenor  of  the  Acts  and  the 
Epistles  sustains  the  fact  of  there  being  three  orders 
in  the  ministry,  and  a  degree  of  authority  committed 
to  those  of  the  first  rank — whether  you  call  them 
Apostles  or  Bishops,  is  immaterial — which  those  of 
the  other  two  grades  did  not  possess.  Thus  then  the 
early   Church  was  constituted.     Our   Lord  left  not 

*  Bishop  Mcllvaine's  Sermon,  at  the  consecration  of  Bishop  Polk, 
p.  17. 


EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  SCRIPTURE:         75 

His  flock  without  its  Chief-Shepherds.  While 
ordinary  priests  and  teachers  were  appointed,  there 
were  also  leaders  in  "  the  Sacramental  host  of  God's 
elect."  And  in  that  day  the  office  of  a  Bishop  was 
often  but  a  passport  to  the  flames  and  the  stake.  It 
obliged  those  who  bore  it  to  stand  in  the  very  first 
rank,  where  trials  were  to  be  encountered,  and  to 
endure  a  double  portion  of  painful  sacrifices.  They 
were  to  be  "  examples  of  suffering,  affliction,  and  of 
patience."  And  nobly  did  they  fulfil  the  high 
duties  imposed  upon  them,  treading  in  the  footsteps 
of  their  Master,  even  to  prison  and  to  death.  The 
blood  of  her  martyred  Bishops  was  the  seed  of  the 
Church.  They  were  the  first  marks  at  which  the 
enemy  aimed,  and  therefore  the  record  of  their  cruel 
sufterings  contains  often  the  history  of  those  early 
persecutions  which  fell  upon  the  fold.  In  bearing 
the  Cross  loftily  before  the  Christian  host,  they  were 
worthy  successors  of  those  Apostles  whose  office  they 
had  inherited. 

When,  therefore,  these  had  passed  away,  bequeath- 
ing their  authority  to  others,  have  we  a  right  to  set 
it  aside,  as  no  longer  binding  ?  If  the  Episcopal 
form  of  government  was  thus  established  in  Apostolic 
days,  can  we  depart  from  it  ?  Are  we  not  justified 
in  cleaving  to  it,  and  insisting  on  it  as  it  has  been 
handed  down  to  us  for  eighteen  centuries  ?  Yes — 
nothing  can  change  the  order  of  the  ministry  but  a 
new  and  direct  revelation  from  Heaven.  It  can  be 
done  by  no  human  authority.  We  are  contented 
then  not  to  try  experiments  in  things  which  God 
hath  settled.  The  well-worn  path  is  before  us, 
and  we  will  not  wander  from  it.     If  the  Rechabites 


']^         EPISCOPACY  PROVED   FROM  SCRIPTURE. 

were  blessed  because  they  reverenced  antiquity,  and 
walked  in  the  way  which  had  been  marked  out  for 
them  in  distant  ages,*  is  it  not  well  for  us,  as  a 
Christian  Church,  to  imbibe  their  steadfast  and 
unchanging  spirit. 

Two  voices  are  striving  to  enlist  our  attention.  The 
one  rises  up  from  those  around  us — the  voice  of  this 
present  age,  as,  "  emulous  of  change,"  it  invites  us 
to  novelties,  and  points  out  unnumbered  paths, 
untried  and  unknown,  in  which  we  are  exhorted  to 
walk.  It  is  a  fitful  voice,  ever  varying,  ever  altering 
its  tones.  The  other  falls  calmly,  yet  solemnly,  upon 
the  ear.  It  comes  down  from  the  years  of  a  dim 
and  distant  antiquity,  and  every  generation  has 
heard  it,  from  the  first  founding  of  the  Church  until 
now.  It  bids  us  cleave  to  the  faith  of  the  Apostles 
and  martyrs.  Its  accents  are  unchanged  from  age  to 
age.  The  former,  is  the  voice  of  erring,  fickle  man. 
The  latter  is  the  voice  of  God.  Which  shall  we 
heed? 

*Jer.  XXXV. 


III. 

EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  fflSTORY. 

Throughout  the  older  world,  story  and  rite — 

Throughout  the  new,  skirting  all  clouds  with  gold — 
Through  rise  and  fall,  and  destinies  manifold 

Of  pagan  empires — through  the  dreams  and  night 

Of  nature,  and  the  darkness  and  the  light, 

Still  young  in  hope,  in  disappointment  old — 
Through  mists  which  fall'n  humanity  unfold, 

Into  the  vast  and  viewless  infinite, 

Rises  th'  Eternal  City  of  our  God. 

The  Cathedral. 

In  the  Preface  to  our  Form  for  the  ordaining  of 
Deacons  is  this  declaration — "  It  is  evident  unto  all 
men,  diligently  reading  Holy  Scripture  and  ancient 
authors,  that  from  the  Apostles'  time  there  have  been 
these  three  orders  of  ministers  in  Christ's  Church — 
Bishops,  Priests,  and  Deacons." — In  the  last  Lecture 
I  took  up  the  former  of  these  points — the  argument 
derived  from  Holy  Scripture — and  endeavored  to 
show  you,  as  well  as  the  narrow  lim-its  of  a  single 
discourse  would  admit,  that  every  allusion  there 
made  to  the  form  of  Church  Government,  proves 
that  it  must  have  been  Episcopal  in  its  nature.  On 
the  present  occasion,  I  propose  to  bring  forward  the 
second  argument  here  set  forth  in  the  declaration  of 
the  Church  —  that  derived  from  the  testimony  of 
Ancient  Authors. 

Let  us  unroll  then  the  records  of  the  past,   and 
looking  away  from  the  strifes  and  vain  assertions  of 


78  EPISCOPACY  PROVED    FROM  HISTORY. 

"  this  ignorant  present  time,"  read  the  words  of  those 
who  wrote  in  the  early  years  of  our  faith — who 
stood  up  within  that  circle  of  light  which  shed  its 
radiance  over  the  Apostolic  days — and  whose  works 
have  been  bequeathed  to  us  as  a  precious  legacy,  to 
tell  how  these  things  were  in  the  golden  days  when 
schism  was  unknown.  In  the  dim  twilight  then  of 
cur  knowledge,  we  would  repeat  tliat  counsel  which 
Bildad  gave  to  Job — "  Inquire,  I  pray  thee,  of  the 
former  age,  and  prepare  thyself  to  the  search  of 
their  fathers :  (For  we  are  but  as  yesterday,  and 
know  nothing,  because  our  days  upon  earth  are  a 
shadow) :  shall  not  they  teach  thee,  and  tell  thee, 
and  utter  words  out  of  their  heart  ?" " 

The  argument,  tlien,  to  be  presented  is  this :  That 
all  writers  of  the  first  three  centuries,  who  describe 
in  any  way  the  condition  of  the  Church,  in  every 
hint  they  give,  and  every  fact  tliey  state,  show  most 
plainly,  that  no  ministry  was  known  or  recognized  in 
that  day,  but  the  same  three-fold  orders  of  Bishops, 
Priests,  and  Deacons,  which  have  continued  down 
even  to  us,  in  uninterrupted  succession.  And  who 
are  these  writers  ?  Men  who  were  the  companions 
and  immediate  successors  of  the  Apostles — confessors 
and  martyrs,  who  poured  forth  their  blood  freely  for 
that  faith  in  which  they  had  lived — men,  whose 
voices  were  heard  proclaiming  the  doctrines  of  the 
Cross  in  every  strange  land — whose  motto  and  prin- 
ciple of  action  was,  that  their  Master  must  inherit 
the  earth — men,  whose  virtues  were  too  heroic,  and 
their  aims  too  lofty,  to  be  fully  comprehended  in 
these  degenerate  days — and  on  the  record   of  whose 

*  Chap.  viii.  8,  9,  10. 


EPISCOPACY    PROVED    FROM   HISTORY.  79 

self-denying  labors  we  now  look  back  as  upon  a 
vision  of  past  beauty  which  has  faded  from  the  earth, 
and  for  whose  return  we  scarcely  dare  even  to  hope. 
Are  their  words,  then,  as  they  come  down  to  us 
from  those  holy  days,  to  be  received  only  with  doubts 
and  carping  questions  ? 

And  we  think,  too,  that  the  very  manner  in  which 
they  gave  their  testimony,  increases  its  force.  They 
wrote  no  arguments  to  prove  the  nature  of  the  Apos- 
tolic ministry.  They  set  forth  no  elaborate  proofs 
of  the  constitution  of  the  Church.  These  were  truths 
which  in  that  day  none  disputed,  and  no  formal 
defence  was  therefore  necessary.  We  learn  all  these 
things  incidentally,  as  they  arc  brought  forward  in 
connection  with  other  features  of  the  Church,  or  the 
ordinary  instructions  by  which  they  sought  to  train 
up  in  holiness  the  people  of  their  charge.  No  writer 
in  that  age  thought  of  proving  that  the  Church  was 
governed  by  Bishops,  any  more  than  he  did  of  es- 
tablishing by  argument  the  fact  that  Rome  was 
governed  by  an  emperor,  and  the  provinces  by  gov- 
ernors who  were  under  him.  Both  are  merely 
alluded  to  as  established  historical  facts.  If  then 
they  who  were  cotemporary  widi  the  Apostles,  and 
they  who  for  three  centuries  followed  them,  all  speak 
of  the  three  orders  of  the  ministry  as  being  defined 
and  established  in  their  day,  may  we  not — adding 
this  to  the  testimony  of  Scripture — believe  that  it  was 
the  divinely  constituted  form  which  our  Lord  pre- 
scribed to  Ilis  Church  ? 

Our  first  witness,  then,  is  St.  Clement.  He  was  a 
fellow-laborer  of  St.  Paul,  who  had  bestowed  upon 
him  the  noblest  commendation  lan^uacre  can  frame. 


8o  EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  HISTORY. 

When  writing  to  the  Philippians,  the  Apostle  says — 
"  Clement  also,  and  other  my  fellow-laborers,  whose 
names  are  in  the  Book  of  Life."  Having  been  ap- 
pointed Bishop  of  Rome,  he  held  that  office  nearly 
ten  years,  until  his  martyrdom.*  The  single  Epistle 
of  his  which  is  still  extant,  w-as  written  to  the  Corin- 
thians, and  so  highly  was  it  esteemed  in  the  early 
Church,  that  Eusebius  (the  Ecclesiastical  Historian 
who  wrote  in  the  beginning  of  the  fourth  century) 
assures  us,  "  it  was  universally  received  by  all,"  and 
indeed  reverenced  by  them  next  to  the  Holy  Scrip- 
tures, and  therefore  "  publicly  read  in  most  of  the 
Churches  for  common  benefit,  both  in  times  past  and 
also  in  his  memory."f  The  object  of  this  Epistle  is, 
to  promote  a  spirit  of  subordination  among  those  to 
whom  he  wrote,  that  no  one  should  intrude  upon  the 
office  of  such  as  were  above  him,  but  each  in  his  own 
station  discharge  his  appropriate  duties.  The  very 
language  which  he  uses,  and  the  comparisons  by 
which  he  illustrates  his  meaning,  prove  most  fully 
that  in  that  day  "  God  in  His  wise  providence  had 
appointed  divers  Orders  in  His  Church.":}: 

For  instance,  he  says — "Let  us  therefore  march 
on,  men  and  brethren,  with  all  earnestness,  in  His 
holy  laws.  Let  us  consider  those  v/ho  fight  under 
our  earthly  governors:  how  orderly,  how  readily, 
and  vvdth  what  exact  obedience  they  perform  those 
tilings  that  are  commanded  them !  All  are  not 
prefects,  nor  tribunes,  nor  cr.ninrions,  nor  inferior 
officers ;  but  every  one  in  ms  respective  rank  does 
what  is  commanded  him  by  the  king,  and  tJiose  zv/io 

•  Cave's  Lives  of  the  Fathers,  vol.  i.  p.  157.       t  Lib.  iii.  c.  16,  38. 
X  Prayer  in  Office  of  Institution. 


EtlStOFALY   PROVED    FROM    HISTORY.        8 1 

have  the  authority  over  him.  They  who  are  great 
cannot  subsist  without  those  who  are  Httle,  nor  the 
little  without  the  great.  But  there  must  be  a  mixture 
in  all  things,  and  then  there  will  be  use  and  profit 
too.  Let  us,  for  example,  take  our  body  (i.  Cor. 
xii.  13) :  the  head  without  the  feet  is  nothing,  neither 
the  feet  without  the  head.  And  even  the  smallest 
members  of  our  body  are  yet  both  necessary  and 
useful  to  the  whole  body.  But  all  conspire  together, 
and  are  subject  to  one  common  life,  namely,  the 
preservation  of  the  whole  body.  Let,  therefore,  our 
whole  body  be  saved  in  Jesus  Christ ;  and  let  every 
one  be  subject  to  his  neighbor,  according  to  the  order 
in  which  he  is  placed  by  the  gift  of  God."    (§  37,  38.) 

Again — he  uses  that  comparison  to  the  Jewish 
priesthood,  which  was  so  common  among  the  early 
writers — "  God  has  ordained,  by  His  supreme  will 
and  authority,  both  where  and  by  what  persons  they 

[that  is.  His  services]  are  to  be  performed 

For  the  Chief  Priest  has  his  proper  services  ;  and  to 
the  Priests  their  proper  place  is  appointed ;  and  to 
the  Levites  appertain  their  proper  ministries ;  and 
the  Layman  is  confined  within  the  bounds  of  what 
is  commanded  to  Laymen.  Let  every  one  of  you, 
therefore,  brethren,  bless  God  in  his  proper  station, 
with  a  good  conscience,  and  with  all  gravity,  not 
exceeding  the  rule  of  his  service  that  is  appointed  to 
him."  (§  40,  41.)  By  this  illustration  he  clearly 
points  out  a  three-fold  ministry. 

Again — he  declares  most  plainly  that  the  Apostolic 

office  was  not  to  cease  with  those  who  first  held  it, 

but  to    descend    to   others   also.     "  So  likewise  our 

Apostles  knew  by  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  that  there 

6 


82  EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  HISTORY. 

should  contentions  arise  about  the  name  of  the 
Bishopric.  And  therefore  having  a  perfect  fore- 
knowledge of  this,  they  appointed  persons,  as  we  be- 
fore said,  and  then  gave  direction  how,  when  they 
should  die,  other  chosen  and  approved  men  should 
succeed  in  the  ministry."    (§  44.) 

Our  next  witness  is  St.  Ignatius.  He,  as  St. 
.Chrysostom  tells  us,  was  intimately  conversant  with 
the  Apostles,  educated  and  nursed  up  by  them,  and 
made  partaker  both  of  their  familiar  discourses,  and 
more  secret  and  uncommon  mysteries.*  He  was 
more  particularly  the  disciple  of  St.  John,  and  when 
fully  instructed  in  the  doctrines  of  Christianity,  was 
consecrated  Bishop  of  Antioch,  the  metropolis  of 
Syria,  and  the  most  famous  and  renowned  city  of  the 
East.  To  this  office  he  was  ordained  by  the  Apos- 
tles who  were  then  living,  and  continued  to  guide  the 
Church  through  the  stormy  period  which  followed, 
for  the  space  of  forty  years,  thirty  of  which  were 
passed  in  the  first  century,  the  age  of  the  inspired 
Apostles,  t  At  length,  at  the  age  of  80,  he  was 
arrested  as  a  Christian,  and  refusing  to  deny  the  Lord 
in  whose  service  he  had  lived,  was  sent  to  Rome  to 
be  devoured  by  wild  beasts  in  the  amphitheatre.  On 
his  way  thither,  he  stopped  at  Smyrna,  and  was  thus 
allowed  to  see  once  more  his  ancient  fellow-disciple, 
St.  Polycarp,  the  Bishop  of  that  city. 

Touching  indeed  must  have  been  the  meeting  of 
these  aged  Christians,  as  thus,  for  the  last  time  on 
earth,  they  beheld  each  other  face  to  face.  What 
hallowed  recollections  of  the  past  must  have  come 

•  Homil.  in  S.  Ignat.  v.  ii.  p.  593. 

t  Cave's  Lives  of  the  Fathera,  v.  i.  p^  179. 


EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  HISTORY.  S^ 

thronging  back  upon  them — thoughts  of  the  early- 
friends  who  had  ah'eady  entered  into  rest — memories 
of  days  when  together  they  sat  at  the  feet  of  the  last 
sui-viving  Apostle,  and  learned  those  lessons  of  love 
for  a  fallen  race,  which  since  they  had  acted  out  in 
their  long  and  toilsome  ministry  !  Had  they  been 
faithful  to  the  lofty  trust  which  he  bestowed  upon 
them  ?  And  were  they  prepared  for  that  dread 
account,  which,  fearful  to  any  of  our  Lord's  ministers, 
must  be  doubly  so  to  those  who  are  the  overseers  of 
all  ?  Solemnly,  too,  must  the  future  have  opened 
its  vista  before  them,  as  these  aged  disciples  of  the 
Cross  communed  with  each  other.  They  were  men 
"appointed  to  death."  With  both,  this  dream  of  life 
was  about  to  vanish  into  eternity.  One  was  rapidly 
approaching  a  death  of  agony ;  while  the  other, 
bowed  down  with  years,  felt  that  the  shadows  of  the 
grave  must  soon  be  gathering  about  his  path. 

Did  no  regrets,  then,  in  this  hour,  mingle  with  the 
musings  of  Ignatius,  as  the  past,  with  its  long  array 
of  trials,  rushed  back  upon  his  mind,  while  coming 
days  held  out  no  promise  but  the  pains  of  martyr- 
dom ?  Was  there  no  shrinking  from  "  the  bitter 
cup  " — no  clinging  still  to  this  decaying  life  ?  Did 
not  nature's  feebleness  wring  from  the  aged  man  the 
prayer — "  Spare  me  yet  a  little  longer,  that  I  may 
recover  my  strength,  before  I  go  hence,  and  be  no 
more  seen  ?"  No — his  lofty  faith  could  triumph  over 
all  earthly  evils.  His  courage  rose  to  a  nobler  eleva- 
tion, as  the  day  drew  nigh,  and  he  could  write  to  his 
sorrov/ing  friends — "  Now  I  begin  to  be  a  disciple ; 
nor  shall  anything  move  me,  whether  visible  or  invis- 
ible, that  I  may  attain  to  Jesus  Christ.     Let  fire  and 


84  EPISCOPACY   PROVED    FROM  HISTORY. 

the  Cross — let  the  companies  of  wild  beasts — let 
breakings  of  bones  and  tearing  of  members — let  the 
shattering  in  pieces  of  the  whole  body — and  all  the 
wicked  torments  of  the  Devil  come  upon  me  ;  only  let 
me  enjoy  Jesus  Christ.  All  the  ends  of  the  world, 
and  the  kingdoms  of  it,  will  profit  me  nothing :  I 
would  rather  die  for  Jesus  Christ,  than  rule  to  the 

utmost    ends    of    the    earth Suffer    me    to 

enter  into  pure  light,  where  being  come,  I  shall  be 
indeed  the  servant  of  God.  Permit  me  to  imitate  the 
passion  of  Christ,  my  God."- 

It  was  while  in  this  situation,  and  filled  with  such 
emotions,  that  Ignatius,  when  at  Smyrna,  wrote  four 
epistles — one  to  the  Ephesians,  one  to  the  Magnes- 
ians,  one  to  the  Trallians,  and  one  to  the  Romans. 
Having  once  more  resumed  his  journey,  while  stop- 
ping at  Troas  on  his  way,  he  added  three  other 
Epistles — to  Polycarp,  to  the  Philadolphians,  and  to 
the  Smyrnians.  These  seven  Epistles  were  collected 
by  St.  Polycarp,  and  being  highly  prized  in  all  ages 
of  the  Church,  have  been  carefully  preserved,  until 
they  have  come  down  to  our  day.  Here  then  is  a 
witness  who  well  knew  the  divinely  appointed  form 
of  Church  government.  What  then  does  he  say  on 
this  point  ?  Why  his  Epistles  are  filled  with  inci- 
dental allusions  to  the  Episcopal  ofiice  and  the  three 
orders  of  the  ministry.  We  will  select  a  few  of 
these  as  examples. 

In  his  Epistle  to  the  Ephesians,  he  testifies  that  in 
his  day — that  is  from  the  year  70  to  the  year  107 — 
Bishops  were  established  in  all  parts  of  the  world,  in  ac- 
cordance with  our  Lord's  will.     His  words  are — "  For 

*  Epist.  ad  Rom.  §  5,  6. 


EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  HISTORY.  85 

even  Jesus  Christ,  our  insuperable  life,  is  sent  by  the 
will  of  the  Father :  as  the  Bishops,  appointed  unto  the 
utmost  bounds  of  the  earth,  are  by  the  will  of  Jesus 

Christ."     (§3.) 

And  again — "Wherefore  it  will  become  you  to 
run  together  according  to  the  will  of  your  Bishop, 
as  also  ye  do.  For  your  famous  Presbytery,  worthy 
of  God,  is  fitted  as  exactly  to  the  Bishop,  as  the 
strings  are  to  the  harp."     (§  4.) 

And  in  enforcing  the  duty  of  obedience,  he  says — 
"  Whomsoever  the  Master  of  the  house  sends  to  be 
over  His  own  household,  we  ought  in  hke  manner  to 
receive  him,  as  we  would  do  Him  that  sent  him.  It  is 
therefore  evident,  that  we  ought  to  look  upon  the 
Bishop  even  as  we  would  do  upon  the  Lord  Him- 
self"    (§  6.) 

In  his  Epistle  to  the  Magnesians  are  these  passages  : 
"Seeing  then  I  have  been  judged  worthy  to  see  you, 
by  Damas,  your  most  excellent  Bishop;  and  by 
your  very  worthy  Presbyters,  Bassus  and  ApoUonius  ; 
and  by  my  fellow  servant,  Sotio  the  Deacon,  in 
whom  I  rejoice,  forasmuch  as  he  is  subject  unto  his 
Bishop,  as  to  the  grace  of  God,  and  to  the  Presbytery, 
as  to  the  law  of  Jesus  Christ."     (§  2.) 

"I  exhort  you,  that  ye  study  to  do  all  things  in  a 
divine  concord :  your  Bishop  presiding  in  the  place 
of  God ;  your  Presbyters  in  the  place  of  the  council 
of  the  Apostles ;  and  your  Deacons,  most  dear  to 
me,  being  entrusted  with  the  ministry  of  Jesus 
Christ  ;  who  was  with  the  Father  before  all  ages, 
and  appeared  in  the  end  to  us."     (§  6.) 

"  Study  therefore  to  be  confirmed  in  the  doctrine 
of  our  Lord,  and  of  his  Apostles,  that  so  whatsoever 


86  EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  HISTORY. 

ye  do,  ye  may  prosper  both  in  body  and  spirit;  in 
faith  and  charity ;  in  the  Son,  and  in  the  Father, 
and  in  the  Holy  Spirit ;  in  the  beginning,  and  in  the 
end ;  together  with  your  most  worthy  Bishop,  and  the 
well-wrought  spiritual  crown  of  your  Presbytery  ;  and 
your  Deacons,  which  are  according  to  God.  Be 
subject  to  your  Bishop."     (§  13.) 

In  the  beginning  of  his  Epistle  to  the  Phila- 
delphians,  he  says  that  he  salutes  them,  especially 
if  they  are  at  unity  with  the  Bishop,  and  Presbyters^ 
who  are  with  him,  and  the  Deacons,  appointed  ac- 
cording to  the  mind  of  Jesus  Christ,  whom  he  hath 
settled  according  to  His  own  will  in  all  firmness,  by 
His  Holy  Spirit." 

In  the  body  of  the  Epistle,  he  utters  a  fearful  sen- 
tence against  tliose  who  violate  the  unity  of  the 
Church.  After  calling  them  "  wolves  who  seem 
worthy  of  belief,  that  with  a  false  pleasure  lead  cap- 
tive those  that  run  in  the  course  of  God,*^'and  "herbs 
which  Jesus  Christ  does  not  dress,"  he  adds — "Be 
not  deceived,  brethren ;  if  any  one  follows  him  that 
makes  a  schism  in  the  Church,  he  shall  not  inherit  the 
kingdom  of  God.  If  any  one  walks  after  any  other 
opinion,  he  agrees  not  with    the  passion  of  Christ.'* 

(§3.) 

And  again — "  I  cried  while  I  was  among  you ;  I 
spake  with  a  loud  voice — attend  to  the  Bishop,  and 

to  the  Presbytery,  and  to  the  Deacons Do 

nothing  without  the  Bishop.''     (§  7.) 

To  the  Smyrnians,  he  wrote  — "  See  that  ye  all 
follow  your  Bishop,  as  Jesus  Christ,  the  Father ;  and 
the  Presbytery,  as  the  Apostles ;  and  reverence  the 
Deacons,  as  the  command  of  God.     Let  no  man  do 


EPISCOPACY    PROVED    FROM  HISTORY.  87 

anything  of  what  belongs  to  the  Church  separately 
from  the  Bishop.  Let  that  Eucharist  be  looked  upon 
as  well  established,  which  is  either  offered  by  the 
Bishop,  or  by  him  to  whom  the  Bishop  has  given  his 
consent.  Wheresoever  the  Bishop  shall  appear,  there 
let  the  people  also  be  ;  as  where  Jesus  Christ  is,  there 
is  the  Catholic  Church."     (§  8.) 

And  in  conclusion,  he  says — "  I  salute  your  very 
worthy  Bishop,  and  your  venerable  Presbytery,  and 
your  Deacons."     (  §  12.) 

In  his  Epistle  to  Polycarp,  also,  he  thus  through 
him  addresses  the  Church  of  Smyrna — "  Hearken 
unto  the  Bishop,  that  God  also  may  hearken  unto 
you.  My  soul  be  security  for  them  that  submit  to 
their  Bishop,  with  their  Presbyters  and  Deacons." 
(§6.) 

Again — he  exhorts  the  Trallians — "  He  that  is 
within  the  altar,  is  pure  ;  but  he  that  is  without,  that 
is,  that  does  any  thing  without  the  Bishop,  and 
Presbyters,  and  Deacons,  is  not  pure  in  his  con- 
science."   (§  7.) 

Such  then  is  the  character  of  all  the  allusions  made 
by  Ignatius,  and  testimony  like  this  to  the  existence 
of  the  three  orders  of  the  ministry  might  be  much 
increased  from  his  Epistles.  We  will  give,  however, 
but  one  more  extract.  It  is  from  the  Epistle  to  the 
Trallians,  where  he  says — "  In  like  manner,  let  all 
reverence  the  Deacons,  as  Jesus  Christ;  and  the 
Bishop,  as  the  Father;  and  the  Presbyters,  as  the 
Sanhedrim  of  God,  and  the  College  of  the  Apostles. 
Without  these  there  is  no  Church."  (§  3.)  Now, 
mark  this  expression.  St.  Ignatius,  who  personally 
knew  the  Apostles,  after  mentioning  the  three  orders 


88  EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  HISTORY. 

of  the  ministry,  declares — Without  THESE  THERE 
IS  NO  Church.  And  he  was  one  cotemporary 
with  the  immediate  disciples  of  our  Lord.  Yet  in 
this  day  wc  are  told,  that  it  is  not  necessary  to  retain 
the  Apostolic  Constitution  of  the  ministry,  and  are 
ridiculed  because  we  cleave  steadfastly  to  it,  following 
in  the  steps  of  these  ancient  martyrs.  But  who — 
we  appeal  to  your  reason — who  was  most  likely  to 
know  what  was  necessary  to  the  constitution  of  a 
Church — Ignatius,  who  had  been  a  disciple  of  St. 
John,  and  gathered  instruction  from  his  holy  lips,  or 
those  who  in  the  nineteenth  century,  having  separated 
from  the  Church,  hesitate  not  to  pronounce  its  Apos- 
tolical ministry  "  a  cunningly  devised  fable  ?"  If, 
indeed,  instead  of  the  mass  of  testimony  before  us,  we 
had  nothing  but  the  Epistles  of  this  single  writer, 
tliey  would  be  amply  sufficient  to  prove  the  existence 
of  Episcopacy  in  the  days  of  the  Apostles.* 

*  With  resjard  to  the  genuineness  and  authenticity  of  these  Epis- 
tles, we  would  observe,  that  several  ancient  writers — such  as  IrenKus, 
a  disciple  of  Polycarp,  Origen,  who  was  born  in  the  latter  part  of  the 
second  century,  and  Eusebius,  the  Ecclesiastical  historian — all  pos- 
sessed copies  of  the  works  of  Ignatius,  and  the  quotations  they  made 
agree  with  passages  now  found  in  our  versions  of  them.  Bishop 
Pearson,  in  his  Vindicia  Epistolarum  Ignalii,  and  John  Daille,  in  his 
De  Scriptis  qua  sub  Dlonysii  Arcop.  et  Ignalii  Antioch.  nominibus 
circumferuntur,  have  fully  asserted  their  claims.  Grotius,  a  Presby- 
terian (as  quoted  by  Pearson,  chap,  v.),  writing  to  Vossius,  says  — 
"The  Epistles  of  Ignatius,  which  your  san  brought  out  of  Italy,  pure 
from  all  those  things  which  the  learned  have  hitherto  suspected, 
Blon<lel  will  not  admit,  b.'caiue  they  afo7-d  a  clear  testimony  to  the 
antiquity  of  Episcopacy.''^  Even  Mosheim  allows — "  Perhaps  there 
would  be  no  contention  with  most  persons  about  the  Epistles  of 
Ignatius,  if  those  who  contend  for  the  divine  origin  and  antiquity  of 
Episcopal  government  had  not  been  enabled  to  support  their  cause 
with  them." —  De  Rebus  Christianis  ante  Consiantinum,  p.  i6o. 

Presbyterians  always  endorse    Ignatius,   except  when  he  proves 


EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM   HISTORY.  89 

The  next  testimony  we  shall  cite  is  that  of  St. 
Polycarp,  who  has  been  already  mentioned  as  the 
fellow  disciple  of  Ignatius.  After  having  been  co- 
tempKDrary  with  the  Apostles  for  forty  years,  and 
filled  the  office  of  Bishop  of  Smyrna  (to  which  he 
was  ordained  by  St.  John)  for  more  than  half  a  cen- 
tury, he  suffered  martyrdom  in  the  year  147,  being 
then  eighty-six  years  old.  We  have  but  one  letter 
of  his  remaining.  The  Philippians  had  requested 
him  to  send  them  the  Epistles  of  Ignatius,  which  he 
did,  adding  to  them  an  Epistle  of  his  own,  beginning 
with  these  words — "  Polycarp  and  the  Presbyters  that 
are  with  him,  to  the  Church  of  God  which  is  at 
Philippi."  This  Epistle  is  chiefly  valuable,  because  it 
contains  an  entire  endorsement  of  all  that  Ignatius  had 
asserted.     His  words  are — "  The  Epistles  of  Ignatius, 

Episcopacy.  Thus,  Dr.  Miller  of  Princeton,  when  arguing  on  the 
minislry,  finds  Ignatius  to  be  unworthy  of  any  credit.  When  wishing, 
however,  to  prove  the  belief  of  the  Early  Church  in  the  divinity  of 
our  Lord,  he  discovers  that  the  disciple  of  St.  John  is  excellent 
authority.    His  recorded  testimony  therefore  stands  thus  : — 

LETTERS   ON  THE    MINISTRY.  LETTERS   ON  UNITARIANISM. 

"  That  even  the  '  Shorter  Epis-  "The   great    body   of  learned 

ties'  of  Ignatius  are  unworthy  of  men  consider  the  smaller  Epistles 

confidence,  as  the  genuine  works  of  Ignatius  as,  in  the  main,  the 

of  the  Father  whose   name  they  real  works   of  the  writer  whose 

bear,  is  the  opinion  of  many  of  the  name  they  l>ear." — p.   122. 
ablest    and    best    judges   in   the 
Protestant  world." — p.  150. 

"Intelligent     readers    are    no  "  I  do  not  admit  that  the  most 

doubt  aware,  that  the  genuineness  learned   and   able   of  the    critics 

of  the    Epistles   of  Ignatius   has  reject     as    spurious     the     seven 

been  called  in  question  by  a  great  shorter  Epistles  of  this  Father." 

majority    of    Protestant   divines.  Letter  on  the  Eternal  Sonship  of 

anil  is  not  only  really  but  deeply  Christ. 
questionable." — Essay     on    the 
office  of  Ruling  Elder. 


90  EPISCOPACY  PROVED    FROM  HISTORY. 

which  he  wrote  unto  us,  together  with  what  others 
of  his  have  come  into  our  hands,  we  have  sent  unto 
you,  according  to  your  order,  which  are  subjoined  to 
this  Epistle ;  by  which  ye  may  be  greatly  profited, 
for  they  treat  of  faith-  and  patience,  and  of  all  things 
that  pertain  to  edification  in  the  Lord  Jesus."  (§  13.) 
Did  not  then  St.  Polycarp  believe  Episcopacy  to  be 
a  divine  institution  ?  Unless  such  had  been  his 
views,  no  earthly  consideration  would  have  induced 
him  thus  openly  and  decidedly  to  have  recorded  his 
approval  of  Epistles  which  so  plainly  set  forth  as 
binding  upon  all  men,  the  three  orders  of  the 
ministry. 

The  next  witness  from  whom  we  shall  quote  is  St. 
Irenajus.  He  was  a  disciple  of  Polycarp,  and  born 
about  the  time  of  St.  John's  death.  Mosheim  speaks 
of  his  works  as  being  "  a  splendid  monument  of  an- 
tiquity."'" Listen  to  his  plain  declaration  with  regard 
to  this  historical  fact — "  We  can  reckon  up  those 
whom  the  Apostles  ordained  to  be  Bishops  in  the 
several  Churches,  and  who  they  were  that  succeeded 

them,    down   to    our   own    times For    the 

Apostles  desired  to  have  those  in  all  things  perfect 
and  unreprovable,  whom  they  left  to  be  their  success- 
ors, and  to  whom  they  committed  their  ozvn  Apostolic 
authority.  We  have  the  sticcessions  of  Bishops,  to 
whom  the  Apostolic  Church  in  every  place  was 
committed.  All  these  [viz.  the  heretics]  are  much 
later  than  tJie  Bishops  to  whom  the  Apostles  did  de- 
liver the  Ch2irchcs."\ 

"  The  true  knowledge  is  the  doctrine  of  the  Apos- 
tles, and  the  ancient  state  of  the  Church  throughout 

•  Eccles.  Hist.  v.  i.  p.  146.  f  Adv.  Hseres.  1.  iii.  c.  4. 


EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  HISTORY,  9 1 

the  whole  world,  and  the  character  of  the  body  of 
Christ  according  to  the  succession  of  Bishops  to  zvhoin 
they  committed  the  Church  that  is  in  every  place, 
and  ivhicJi  has  descended  even  nnto  ns.'"^ 

And  he  afterwards  adds,  with  regard  to  those  who 
inherited  the  Apostolic  office — "  With  the  succession 
of  their  Episcopacy,  they  have  the  sure  gift  of  trutli, 
according  to  the  good  pleasure  of  the  Father." 

We  will  bring  forward  the  testimony  of  but  one 
more  witness.  It  is  that  of  Tertullian — the  most 
eminent  Latin  scholar  of  his  day — who  lived  at  the 
end  of  the  second  century.  In  his  work,  De  Prcescrip., 
Hcereticontm,  when  arguing  against  those  who  had 
wandered  from  the  faitli,  he  says — "  Let  them  pro- 
duce the  original  of  their  Churches ;  let  them  show 
the  order  of  their  Bishops,  that  by  their  succession, 
deduced  from  the  beginning,  we  may  see  whether 
their  first  Bishop  had  any  of  the  Apostles,  or  Apos- 
tolical men,  who  did  likewise  persevere  with  the 
Apostles,  for  his  ordainer  and  predecessor :  for  thus 
the  Apostolical  Churches  do  derive  their  succession  ; 
as  the  Church  of  Smyrna  from  Polycarp,  whom  John 
the  Apostle  placed  there ;  the  Church  of  Rome  from 
Clement,  who  was  in  like  manner  ordained  by  Peter ; 
and  so  the  other  ChnrcJies  can  produce  those  co7isti- 
tuted  in  their  Bishoprics  by  the  Apostles."     (c.  32.)t 

*  Adv.  Hseres.  1.  iv.  c.  6. 

t  We  can  show  from  two  early  writers  how  carefully  the  Church  in 
that  day  preserved — as  Tertullian  here  states  —  the  succession  of  the 
Bishops  in  the  different  sees.  Thus  Irenaeus  says,  "seeing  that  it  is 
very  long,  in  such  a  volume  as  this  to  enumerate  the  succession  of 
Bishops  in  all  the  Churches, ' '  he  will  give,  as  an  example,  that  of 
Rome,  which  he  does  in  these  words  : — 

"  The  blessed  Apostles,  therefore,  founding  and  instructing  the 
Church,  [of  Rome,]  delivered  to  Linus  the  administration  of  its  Bish- 


92  EPISCOPACY   PROVED    FROM  HISTORY. 

And  thus  we  might  go  on,  age  after  age,  and 
multiply  our  witnesses  to  this  truth.  The  writings 
of  Hegesippus,  Polycrates,  Dionysius   of  Corinth,* 

opric  :  Paul  makes  mention  of  this  Linus  in  his  Epistles  to  Timothy. 
To  him  succeeded  Anacletus;  after  whom,  in  the  third  place  from  the 
Apostles,  Clement  had  the  Bishopric  allotted  to  him.  He  had  seen 
the  blessed  Apostles,  and  was  conversant  with  them;  and  as  yet  he 
had  the  preaching  of  the  Apostles  sounding  in  his  ears,  and  their 
tradition  before  his  eyes  :  and  not  he  alone,  for  at  that  time  there 
were  many  yet  remaining  alive,  who  had  been  taught  by  the  Apostles. 
To  this  Clement  succeeded  Evarestus,  and  to  Evarestus,  Alexander  ; 
and  then  Xystus  was  appointed  the  sixth  from  the  Apostles  ;  and 
after  him  Telesphorus,  who  suffered  a  glorious  martyrdom  ;  after  him 
Hyginus;  then  Pius;  after  him,  Anicetus.  And  Soter  having  suc- 
ceeded Anicetus,  Eleutherus  now  has  the  Bishopric,  in  the  twelfth 
place  from  the  Apostles.  By  this  order  and  succession,  that  tradition 
which  is  from  the  Apostles,  and  the  preaching  of  the  truth,  is  descended 
unto  us."     Adv.  Hares,  lib.  iii.  ch.  3. 

In  the  same  way,  Eusebius,  the  ecclesiastical  historian,  in  his 
Church  History,  written  about  the  time  of  the  Council  of  Nice,  A.  D. 
325,  gives  the  successions  of  the  four  patriarchal  Sees,  of  Rome,  Alex- 
andria, Jerusalem,  and  Antioch,  from  the  beginning  down  to  the  year 
305.  These  he  copied  from  the  archives  and  records  of  the  different 
Churches,  which  were  extant  in  his  day,  but  have  since  been  lost.  We 
are  told,  indeed,  that  by  the  express  command  of  the  Emperor,  all 
these  public  registers  throughout  the  Roman  empire  were  laid  open 
to  him,  "and  out  of  these  materials  he  principally  compiled  his 
Ecclesiastic  History." — [Cave's  Lives  of  the  Fathers,  v.  ii.  p.  135.) 
The  same  lists  are  given  by  other  writers,  so  as  to  render  the  facts 
with  regard  to  the  succession  in  the  primitive  Church,  indisputable. 

There  was  also  in  that  day  a  library  at  ^lia,  which  was  founded 
by  Alexander  the  Bishop  there,  which  has  since  been  destroyed. 
"From  this" — says  Eusebius — "we  have  also  been  able  to  collect 
materials  for  our  present  work." — [Eccles.  Hist.  lib.  vi.  chap.  20.) 

*  The  writings  of  these  three  authors  have  perished,  and  must  be 
included  among  those  ancient  records  used  by  Eusebius,  which  are 
now  lost  to  the  world.  We  receive,  however,  their  testimony  on  the 
subject  of  the  government  of  the  early  Church,  from  the  extracts  he 
has  incorporated  in  his  own  history.  Hegesippus  in  the  second  cen- 
tury wrote  a  history  of  the  Church  from  the  beginning  to  his  own 
day,  and  having  travelled  extensively,  speaks  of  the  Bishops  presiding 
in  the  different  countries  he  had  visited.— (£'w^3.   1.  iv.   c.  8.    22.) 


EPISCOPACY    PROVED    FROM  HISTORY.  93 

Clement  of  Alexandria,  Origan,  Cyprian,  Optatus, 
Ephren.  Syrus,  and  that  code  of  laws  called  "The 
Apostolical  Canons,"  are  all  equally  clear  and  distinct 
in  their  assertion  of  the  truth,  that  through  all  those 
ages  the  Episcopal  form  of  government  was  the  only 
one  existing  in  the  Church.*  So  evident,  indeed, 
was  the  pre-eminence  of  the  Bishops,  that  even  the 
heathen  were  well  aware  of  the  fact.  Thus,  when 
the  Emperor  Maximinus  commenced  his  persecution 
against  th-e  Christians,  we  are  told  by  Eusebius,  that 
"he  commanded  at  first  only  the  Archontes,  or  chief 
rulers  of  the  Churches  to  be  slain. "f  And  St. 
Cyprian  tells  Antoninus,  that  so  great  was  the  hatred 
of  the  Emperor  Decius  against  the  Christians,  that 
"  he  could  have  heard  with  greater  patience  that 
another  prince  had  set  himself  up  as  a  rival  in  the 
empire,  than  that  a  Bishop  should  have  been  settled 
in  the  city  of  Rome.":}:  The  historian  Gibbon  is 
forced  to  admit  the  existence  of  Episcopacy  even  in 
the  apostolic  days.  His  words  are — "  The  Episcopal 
form  of  government  ....  appears  to  have  been 
introduced  before  the  close  of  the  first  century."  "  It 
had  acquired  in  a  very  early  period  the  sanction  of 
antiquity."  "  Nulla  ecclesia  sine  Episcopo,  (no  Church 
without  a  Bishop,)  has  been  a  fact  as  well  as  a  maxim 
since  the  time  of  Tertullian  and  Irenaeus."  He  ac- 
knowledged, that,  "  after  we  have  passed  the  difficul- 

For  the  testimony  of  Polycrates,  see  Etiseb.  1.  v.  c.  24. — and  for  that 
of  Dionysius,  Eiiseb.  1.  iv.  c.  23. 

*  And  yet  with  all  this  array  of  testimony  before  h-im,  (for  we  have 
only  given  a  mere  specimen,)  Dr.  Miller  of  Princeton  can  say,  they 
refer  us  to  some  vague  siiogestions  and  allusions  of  a  few  of  the  early 
fathers. — Letters  on  the  Ministry,  p.  50. 

t  Eccles.  Hist.  1.  vi.  c.  28.  %  Epist.  55. 


94  EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  HISTORY. 

ties  of  tJie  first  century'' — which  would  be  before  the 
death  of  St.  John — "  zve  find  the  Episcopal  govern- 
ment imiversally  established,  until  it  was  interrupted 
by  the  republican  genius  of  the  Swiss  and  German 
reformers.'""  The  skeptical  historian  found  in  truth, 
when  he  sat  down  to  sketch  the  progress  of  our  faith 
in  that  early  day,  that  the  history  of  Christianity  was 
the  history  of  Episcopacy.  To  have  drawn  the 
picture  of  our  religion  in  the  first  three  centuries,  yet 
without  admitting  the  government  of  Bishops,  would 
have  been  as  easy  as  to  have  given  a  view  of  Impe- 
rial Rome  in  the  ages  of  her  "  Decline  and  Fall," 
without  making  any  mention  of  her  Emperors.  The 
Church  with  her  three-fold  ministry  met  him  at 
every  step.  From  the  very  first  they  were  insepara- 
ble, and  could  not  be  dissevered.  God  had  "joined 
them  together,"  and  man  could  not  "  put  them 
asunder."  Regarding  them  simply  as  historical 
facts,  we  have  the  same  evidence  of  the  existence  of 
Episcopacy  throughout  the  Church  in  primitive 
times,  that  we  have  of  the  use  of  baptism,  or  the 
weekly  reception  of  the  Eucharistf 

*  Decline  and  Fall,  ch.  xv. 

■f  Palmer  in  his  Treatise  on  the  Church  (v.  i.  pp.  392-4)  shows  the 
uniform  practice  with  respect  to  ordination  by  Bishops  only,  and  the 
decision  which  was  at  once  made  with  regard  to  the  invalidity  of  this 
rite  by  Presbyters  only.  "We  find  several  instances  in  which  such 
ordinations  were  declared  null,  but  not  a  single  case  has  been  adduced 
in  which  they  were  really  allowed.  In  324,  the  council  of  all  the 
Egyptian  Bishops  assembled  at  Alexandria  under  Hosius,  declared 
null  and  void  the  ordinations  performed  by  Colluthus,  a  Presbyter  of 
Alexandria,  who  had  separated  from  his  Bishop,  and  pretended  to  act 
as  a  Bishop  himself.  (Athanas.  Oper.  t.  i.  p.  193.)  In  340,  the 
Egyptian  Bishops,  in  their  defence  of  St.  Alhanasius,  alluding  to 
Ischyras,  who  pretended  to  be  a  priest,  said,  'Whence,  then,  was 
Ischyras  a  Presbyter  ?     Who  was  his  ordainer  ?     Colluthus  ?    For  this 


EFISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  HISTORY.  95 

And  this  continued  to  be  the  case  for  fifteen 
hundred  years:  for  until  the  Reformation  in  the 
sixteenth  century  there  is  no  evidence  of  the  exist- 
ence of  any  reUgious  community,  without  a  Bishop 
and  Episcopal  government.  At  this  time  it  was, 
when  old  customs  and  rites  were  broken  up,  and  the 
restless  desire  was  created  to  make  all  things  new, 
that  the  many  parties  which  we  see  in  the  Christian 
world  took  their  rise.  The  Church  at  that  period 
being  deformed  by  the  corruptions  which  had 
gradually  gathered  around  her  as  the  Middle  Ages 
went  by,  there  was  a  natural  wish  in  the  minds  of 
men  to  restore  her  to  Apostolic  purity.  Yet  in  this, 
as  is  often  the  case  in  other  things,  they  ran  to  the 
opposite  extreme.  Among  the  reformers  on  the 
continent,  the  reason  let  loose  from  its  thraldom, 
indulged  in  the  strangest  extravagances.  The  fol- 
lowers of  Luther,  Melancthon,  Zuinglius,  and  Calvin, 
differed  widely,  but  looked  only  to  their  own  private 
views   as    their   guides.     And    the    result  was,  that 

only  remains.  But  it  is  known  to  all  and  doubted  by  no  one,  that 
Colluthus  died  a  Presbyter  ;  that  his  hands  were  without  authority  ; 
and  that  all  who  were  ordained  by  him  in  time  of  the  schism,  were 
reduced  to  the   state   of  Inymen,  and   as   such   attend   the    Church 

asscml)lies." — [Ibid-p-  134-) Epiphanius  refutes  the  doctrine 

of  Aerius,  observing,  that  Bishops  begat  fathers  of  the  Clmrch  by 
ordination,  Presbyters  beget  sons  only  by  baptism,  and  concludes, 
*  How  can  he  constitute  a  Presbyter  who  has  no  right  to  ordain  him 
by  imposition  of  hands?'  {Epiph,  Hures.  75.  Oper.  t.  i.  p.  908.) 
....  No  difficulties  induced  the  Church  to  break  through  this  rule. 
Never  do  we  read,  even  in  the  height  of  the  Arian  persecutions,  of  an 
attempt  to  supply  the  necessities  of  the  Churches  by  means  of  Pres- 
byterian ordinations  ;  no,  not  though  it  was  held  tha-t  in  a  time  of 
such  necessity,  all  the  ordinary  rules  might  be  dispensed  with.  Even 
when  the  Vandals  exiled  the  whole  body  of  the  African  Bishops  to 
the  number  of  nearly  500,  {Fleury.  Hist.  Eccl.  lib.  xxx.  §  7,)  we  read 
of  no  attempt  to  deviate  from  the  universal  rule." 


96  EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  HISTORY. 

instead  of  retaining  what  was  primitive  and  apostolic 
in  the  Church — lytaining  in  fact  the  Church  herself, 
reUevcd  from  all  corruptions — they  abandoned  every 
ancient  landmark.  Thus  the  expedient  was  at  last 
resorted  to,  of  forming  a  new  Church  and  a  new 
ministry  of  their  own ;  and  their  followers,  to  defend 
its  validity,  have  been  obliged  since  that  time  to  take 
the  ground  that  Episcopal  ordination  is  not  neces- 
sary, and  that  but  one  order  of  ministers  is  required. 
The  door  being  thus  throv/n  widely  open,  unnumbered 
sects  arose,  each  modelled  after  its  particular  leader, 
as  he  happened  to  give  a  prominence  to  some  single 
doctrine  of  his  creed ;  and  these,  or  their  offspring, 
form  that  "  mixed  multitude "  which  encircle  the 
camp  of  the  true  Israel  as  it  journeys  through  the 
wilderness. 

That  the  Reformers  at  first  intended  to  separate 
from  the  Church  we  do  not  believe.  This  step  grew 
out  of  occurrences  which  they  could  not  have  fore- 
seen. The  storm  they  had  raised  was  indeed  beyond 
all  human  control,  and  the  whirlwind  swept  them 
along  with  it  in  its  course.  They  had  called  forth 
the  passions  of  men,  and  taken  ofT  every  restraint 
from  spiritual  freedom,  and  who  had  power  to  say — 
"  Thus  far  and  no  farther  shalt  thou  go  ?"  The 
successive  steps  too  taken  by  the  court  of  Rome,  at 
last  rendered  an  accommodation  impossible,  arfd 
placed  the  Lutherans  under  the  ban  of  interdict,  as 
heretics,  whose  company  the  faithful  were  commanded 
to  avoid.  "  It  would  be,  therefore,  a  great  mistake 
to  suppose  that  Luther  or  his  party  designed  to  effect 
a  reformation  in  the  Church  ;  they  were  driven  en- 
tirely by  the  force  of   circumstances  to  adopt  the 


EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  HISTORY.  97 

course  they  did.  It  was  not  premeditated  or  desired 
by  them.  They  would  have  widely  altered  the 
Lutheran  system,  which  was  a  merely  temporary 
arrangement,  if  by  so  doing  they  could  have  recovered 
the  communion  of  the  Church.  But  the  opposition 
of  the  Roman  See  thwarted  these  designs ;  the  Coun- 
cil of  Trent  rendered  them  still  more  difficult ;  and, 
in  time,  the  Lutherans  forgot  that  their  system  was 
merely  provisional,  pretended  to  justify  it  as  ordinary 
and  sufficient,  and  lost  their  desire  for  accommodation 
with  the  Roman  and  German  Churches."* 

The  Reformers  fully  realized  the  difficulty  of  their 
position,  and  the  necessity  of  Episcopacy  to  con- 
stitute a  Church  or  a  valid  ministry.  We  accordingly 
find  in  their  writings,  repeated  declarations  in  favor 
of  this  form  of  government,  and  even  the  distinct 
acknowledgment  of  its  divine  authority.  They 
arrayed  themselves,  not  against  this  power  itself,  but 
against  the  abuse  of  it  in  the  Romish  Church. 

*  Palmer's  Treatise  on  the  Church,  v.  i,  p.  341.  See  this  point 
proved  in  Part.  i.  ch.  12,  sec.  i,  2. — It  was  a  favorite  remark  of  Napo- 
leon, that  "  no  man  who  commenced  a  revolution,  knew  where  he  was 
going  " — and  the  statement  is  as  true  of  moral  and  religious,  as  of 
political  changes.  It  is,  we  think,  an  error  to  regard  Luther  so 
entirely  as  creating  and  moulding  the  opinions  of  his  age,  or  by  any 
means  contemplating  the  extent  to  which  he  himself  would  be  carried. 
He  was  the  living  development — the  speaking  voice — of  that  deep 
feeling  which  pervaded  all  classes  of  society,  and  which  would  even- 
tually have  found  utterance  and  produced  a  reformation,  had  Luther 
never  existed.  The  opposition  to  the  Romish  Church  in  France, 
commenced  before  the  name  of  Luther  had  been  heard  in  tbat  country. 
Of  course,  after  he  had  taken  the  bold  stand  into  which  he  was  driven, 
his  reaction  upon  the  people  was  as  great  as  their  action  upon  him. 
He  presented  a  centre  of  unity,  and  gave  direction  and  aim  to  their 
efforts.  But  no  one  can  thoughtfully  read  his  life,  without  perceiving, 
that  instead  of  leading  his  generation,  he  was  himself  borne  forward 
by  the  heavings  of  the  mighty  mass  beneath  him. 

7 


98  EPISCOPACY  PROVED   FROM  HISTORY. 

Thus  in  the  Confession  of  Augsburg,  (pars.  i.  art. 
22^  "  which  Melancthon  drew  up,  holding  consulta- 
tion all  the  while  with  LUTHER,""^  it  says  of  Bishops 
— "  The  Churches  ought,  necessarily,  and  y;/r^  divitio, 

to  obey  them." "The  Bishops  might  easily 

retain  their  legitimate  obedience,  if  they  would  not 
urge  us  to  observe  traditions  which  cannot  be  kept 

with  a  good  conscience There  is  no  design  to 

deprive  the  Bishops  of  their  authority,  but  this  only 
is  sought,  that  the  Gospel  be  permitted  to  be  purely 
taught,  and  a  few  observances  be  relaxed."  And  in 
the  Articles  of  Smalcand,  "  drawn  up  in  German  by 
Luther,  in  his  own  acrimonious  style,"t  in  denounc- 
ing the  supremacy  assumed  by  the  Pope,  he  says — 
"The  Church  can  never  be  better  governed  and 
preserved,  than  when  we  all  live  uixier  one  Head, 
Jesus  Christ,  and  all  Bishops,  equal  in  office,  though 
unequal  in  gifts,  are  most  perfectly  united  in  diligence, 

concord  of  doctrine,  &c The  Apostles  were 

equal,  and  afterwards  the  Bishops  in  all  Christendom, 
until  the  Pope  raised  his  head  above  all." — (pars.  ii. 
art.  4.) 

In  the  same  strain  Melancthon  always  wrote.  In 
the  Apology  for  the  Augsburg  Confession,  which  he 
drew  up,  he  says — "  We  have  oft  protested,  that  we 
do  greatly  approve  the  ecclesiastical  polity  and  de- 
grees in  the  Church,  and  as  much  as  lieth  in  us,  do 
desire  to  conserve  them.  We  do  not  mislike  the 
authority  of  Bishops — we  do  here  protest  that  we 
would  willingly  preserve  the  ecclesiastical  polity — 
that  it  may  not  be  imputed  to  us,  that  the  authority 
of  Bishops  is  overthrown  by  us." 

•  Mosheim's  Eccles.  Hist.  v.  iii.  p.  49.  t  Ibid.  p.  64. 


EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  HISTORW  99 

Again  he  says — "  I  would  to  God  it  lay  in  me  to 
restore  the  government  of  Bishops.  For  I  see  what 
manner  of  Church  we  shall  have,  the  ecclesiastical 
polity  being  dissolved.  I  do  see  that  hereafter  will 
grow  up  a  greater  tyranny  in  the  Church,  than  there 
ever  was  before." 

Once  more  he  asks — "  By  what  right  or  law  may 
we  dissolve  the  ecclesiastical  polity,  if  the  Bishops 
will  grant  us  that  which  in  reason  they  ought  to 
grant  ?  And  if  it  were  lawful  for  us  so  to  do,  yet 
surely  it  were  not  expedient.  Ltitker  was  ever  of  this 
opinion  y 

Beza,  in  his  treatise  against  Saravia,  says — "  If 
there  are  any,  (which  you  shall  hardly  persuade  me 
to  believe,)  who  reject  the  whole  order  of  Episcopacy, 
God  forbid  that  any  man  of  a  sound  mind  should 
assent  to  the  madness  of  such  men." 

We  will  quote  the  opinions  of  but  one  other  of  that 
age.  Among  those  who  are  now  reverenced  by  the 
opposers  of  Episcopacy,  there  is  no  name  stands 
higher  than  that  of  CALVIN.  Yet  listen  to  his  testi- 
mony. In  his  commentary  on  Titus  (chap.  i.  v.  5) 
he  says — "  At  this  time "  (that  is,  in  the  time  of 
Titus)  "  there  was  no  equality  among  the  ministers  of 
the  Church,  but  some  one  in  authority  and  council 
had  the  pre-eminence." 

Again,  he  declares — "  To  every  Bishop  was  com- 
mitted the  government  of  his  oivn  clergy,  that  they 
should  rule  their  clergy  according  to  the  Canons,  and 
hold  them  to  their  duty."* 

"  In  the  solemn  assembly,  the  Bishops  had  a  cer- 
tain apparel  whereby  they  might  be  distinctly  known 
•  Tnstit.  lib.  4.  ch.  12. 


lOO         EPISCOPACY  PROVED    FROM  HISTORY. 

from  Other  Priests.  They  ordered  all  Priests  and 
Deacons  with  only  laying  on  of  hands.  But  every 
Bishop,  with  the  company  of  Priests,  ordained  his  own 
Priests:"^ 

In  his  Book,  De  Necess.  rcforniand.  Eccles.  he  has 
these  words — "  Let  them  give  us  such  an  hierarchy, 
in  which  Bishops  may  be  so  above  the  rest,  as  they 
refuse  not  to  be  under  Christ,  and  depend  upon  Him 
as  their  only  Head ;  that  they  maintain  a  brotherly 
society,  &c.  If  there  be  any  that  do  not  behave 
themselves  with  all  reverence  and  obedience  towards 
them,  there  is  no  anathema,  but  I  confess  them 
worthy  of  it."t  But  especially  is  his  opinion  of 
Episcopacy  shown  by  a  letter,  which  he  and  Bullin- 
ger,  and  other  learned  men,  wrote  in  1549  to  King 
Edward  VI.,  offering  to  make  him  their  Defender, 
and  to  have  Bishops  in  their  Churches  as  there  were 
in  England.  Unfortunately,  this  letter  fell  into  the 
hands  of  the  Romish  Bishops.  The  following  ac- 
count of  it  was  found  among  the  papers  of  Arch- 
bishop Parker — '*  And  whereas  John  Calvin  had  sent  a 
letter  in  King  Edward  the  Vlth's  reign,  to  have 
conferred  with  the  clergy  of  England  about  some 
things  to  this  effect,  two  Bishops,  viz.  Gardiner  and 
Bonner,  intercepted  the  same ;  whereby  Mr.  Calvin's 
overture  perished.  And  he  received  an  answer,  as 
if  it  had  been  from  the  reformed  Divines  of  those 
times,  wherein  they  checked  him  and  slighted  his 
proposals :  from  which  time  John  Calvin  and  the 
Church  of  England  were  at  variance  in  several  points; 
which  otherwise  through  God's  mercy  had  been 
qualified,  if  those  papers  of  his  proposals  had  been 

*  Ibid.  ch.  4.  t  Stryne's  Life  of  Archbishop  Parker,  p.  140. 


EPISCOPACY   PROVED    FROM    HISTORY.       lOI 

discovered  unto  the  Queen's  Majesty  during  John 
Calvin's  Hfe.  But  being  not  discovered  until  or 
about  the  sixth  year  of  her  Majesty's  reign,  her  Ma- 
jesty much  lamented  they  were  not  found  sooner : 
which  she  expressed  before  her  Council  at  the  same 
time,  in  the  presence  of  her  great  friends,  Sir  Henry 
Sidney,  and  Sir  William  Cecil.* 

Such  then  were  the  opinions  of  the  Reformers  on 
the  Continent — the  fathers  of  Presbyterianism.  But 
borne  along  by  the  current,  they  at  length  violated 
their  own  declared  principles  and  clear  convictions  of 
duty.  Like  John  Wesley  in  modern  times,  impa- 
tient of  the  movings  of  Providence,  they  could  not 
wait  God's  time,  and  therefore  rushed  into  open 
schism,  and  cut  themselves  off  from  the  Church. 
And  now,  for  three  hundred  years,  the  world  has 
been  reaping  the  bitter  fruits  of  the  harvest  which 
they  sowed.  Strife  and  dissension,  and  every  form 
of  error,  prevail  among  their  followers,  and  in  the 
lands  where  once  they  preached  scarcely  a  trace  of 
their  spirit  remains.  "  The  first  loss  drew  all  others 
after  it.  Although  the  full  declension  was  not  seen 
at  once,  the  mystical,  moral,  and  doctrinal  systems 
perished  together.  They  lingered  on  as  bodies  of 
which  the  organic  frame  is  maimed ;  and  they  died 
rather  by  a  natural  than  by  a  mysterious  law.  Even 
after  their  virtual  extinction  as  Christian  Churches, 
there  was,  as  in  the  corpse  of  the  dead,  a  lingering 
warmth,  which  made  a  mocking  promise  of  Hfe ;  till 
that  too  fled,  and  they  were  left  in  the  cold  torpor  of 
heresy  or  unbelief  "f 

From  this  melancholy  picture  of  inconsistency,  and 

*  Ibid.  p.  141.  t  Manning's  Unity  of  the  Church,  p.  285. 


102  EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  HISTORY. 

spiritual  desolation,  we  turn  with  gratitude  to  Eng- 
land, where  the  principles  by  which  they  were 
guided,  and  the  end  attained,  were  all  so  widely 
different.  There,  the  Reformation  left  the  whole 
Church,  with  its  three-fold  ministry  of  Bishops, 
Priests,  and  Deacons,  unimpaired.  Bowing  to  no 
mere  human  opinions,  when  the  views  of  Luther, 
Calvin,  and  Arminius,  were  quoted  to  turn  her  from 
the  truth,  she  had  a  ready  answer  at  hand,  and  a 
higher  authority  to  quote — "  Jesus  I  know,  and  Paul 
I  know ;  but  who  are  these  ?"  With  a  careful  hand 
the  errors  of  doctrine  and  practice  which  had  crept 
in,  were  removed,  but  nothing  was  touched  which 
could  injure  the  integrity  of  the  Church.  The  vene- 
rable edifice  itself  was  left  unaltered.  The  dust  which 
had  settled  upon  it,  obscuring  the  beauty  of  its 
architecture,  was  swept  away — the  deforming  addi- 
tions which  the  hand  of  man  had  made,  were  cut 
off — and  then,  it  stood  forth  as  it  was  in  primitive 
times,  in  its  ancient  freshness  and  beauty.  The 
order  of  her  ministry  was  not  interfered  with — all 
that  was  pure  and  ancient  in  her  Liturgy  was  retained 
— and  from  her  we  have  derived  the  succession  of 
Bishops  and  the  Apostolic  ministry.  Through  her, 
therefore,  we  can  trace  back  our  orders  to  the  days 
of  the  Apostles,  and  feel  that  we  receive  from  them 
that  authority  by  which  we  minister  at  the  altar. 

This,  then,  is  the  simple  historical  account  of  the 
Reformation  of  our  branch  of  the  Church,  and  the 
origin. of  those  who  now  declare,  that  but  one  order 
of  ministers  is  necessary,  and  that  Presbyters  have 
power  to  ordain.  They  date  back  only  for  the  last 
three  hundred  years.     It  was    in    1594 — before   the 


ETISCOPACY    PROVED    FROM  HISTORY.        103 

changes  produced  by  the  Reformation  had  subsided 
into  quietness — that  the  learned  Hooker,  while  he 
rejoiced  at  the  happy  lot  of  his  own  Church  in 
England,  as  he  heard  the  assertions  made  by  those 
on  the  Continent  who  discarded  Episcopal  govern- 
ment, that  their  own  form  was  primitive,  issued  to 
them  this  challenge — "  A  very  strange  thing  sure  it 
were,  that  such  a  discipline  as  ye  speak  of  should  be 
taught  by  Christ  and  His  Apostles,  in  the  word  of 
God,  and  no  Church  ever  have  found  it  out,  nor 
received  it  till  this  present  time ;  contrariwise,  the 
government  against  which  ye  bend  yourselves  be 
observed  everywhere  throughout  all  generations  and 
ages  of  the  Christian  world,  no  Church  ever  perceiv- 
ing the  word  of  God  to  be  against  it.  We  require 
you  to  find  out  but  one  CJiurch  upon  the  face  of  the 
zvhole  earth,  that  hath  been  ordered  by  your  discipline, 
or  hath  not  been  ordered  by  ours,  that  is  to  say,  by 
Episcopal  regiment,  sithence  the  time  that  the  blessed 
Apostles  %vere  here  conversant."'^ 

This  challenge  has  never  yet  been  answered,  and 
it  is  on  this  point  that  we  rest  our  argument  If  for 
the  first  1500  years  no  Church  can  be  shown  without 
Episcopal  government,  then  what  authority  had  any, 
at  the  end  of  that  time,  to  form  a  new  ministry  of 
their  own,  setting  aside  that  derived  in  uninterrupted 
succession  from  the  Apostles  ?f 

*  Preface  to  Eccles.  Polity,  sect.  4. 

"t  There  are  two  excuses  generally  made  by  the  followers  of  the 
Continental  Reformers  for  this  step.  The  first  is  that  of  necessity — 
their  inaijility  to  procure  orders  from  regularly  ordained  Bishops. 
We  will  answer  this  plea  in  the  words  of  Bishop  Whittingham  : — 

*'  It  will  not  be  denied  that  Luther  was  virtually  in  j)ossession  of 
Episcopal  jurisdiction,    at   Wittemberg,  after    1526;  and   Calvin,    at 


104  EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  HI  STORY. 

We  will  briefly  mention  one  fact  more.     The  reply 
commonly  made  to  us  is,  that  our  evidence  comes 

Geneva,  after  1541.  They  needed  but  to  obtain  the  order,  to  secure 
the  Apostolical  succession  at  least.  .  .  .  Could  they  have  obtained  the 
order  ? 

"  I.  As  to  Luther.  Several  Bishops  are  known  to  have  been  favor- 
able to  'the  new  learning,'  and  to  its  founder  personally:  e.  g., 
George  Polentius,  Bishop  of  Sambia,  in  1524;  his  successor,  Paul 
Speratus,  1530;  (Wenisdorf  Program,  de  Anhaltinorum  in  Kef.  meritis. 
p.  I.  s.) ;  Matthew,  Bishop  of  Bantzig,  who  wrote  to  Luther  in  terms 
of  strong  affection,  and  sent  him  a  present,  in  1529  ;  (Luther's 
Briefe.  Ep.  mo,  ed.  De  Wette.  IIL  462);  Matthew  Jagovlus  Bishop 
of  Bradenburg  ;  (the  Diocesan  of  Wittemberg)  ;  the  Archbishop  of 
Salzburgh,  who  preceded  Ernest ;  (accessit,  1540)  ;  and  Herman,  the 
famous  reforming  Archbishop  of  Cologne,  of  whose  liturgical  labors 
so  much  use  has  been  made  in  some  of  the  offices  of  the  English 
Church.  It  is  hard  to  believe,  that  if  due  anxiety  had  been  felt,  and 
proper  measures  taken,  the  Episcopal  succession  might  not  have  been 
obtained  for  the  Lutheran  communion  from  some  one  or  more  of  these 
prelates. 

"  IL  As  to  Calvin.  Peter  Paul  Vergerio,  Bishop  of  Capo  d'Istria, 
and  more  than  once  Papal  nuncio,  went  over  to  the  Reformed  about 
1546.  His  brother,  also  a  Bishop,  followed  him.  Spifame,  Bishop 
cf  Nevers,  became  a  Protestant  in  1557.  He  was  employed  in  im- 
portant negotiations,  and  was  in  Geneva  about  that  time.  He  was 
called  to  bj  'mini.stre'  at  Lyons,  in  1561.  (Bayle,  Art.  Spifame.)  Jo. 
Anth.  Caraccioli,  Bishop  of  Troyes,  publicly  embraced  Protestantism 
in  1561.  He  offered  to  resign  to  the  people,  but  was  re-elected  and 
re -ordained.  (Bayle,  Art.  Caraccioli)."  Note  to  Palmer^  s  Treatise 
on  the  Church,  v.  i.  p.  355. 

The  probability  is,  that  Calvin,  being  disheartened  by  the  repulse 
he  supposed  he  had  received  from  the  Church  of  England,  resigned 
himself  to  circumstances,  without  making  any  further  effort. 

The  second  excuse  made  for  the  Reformers  is,  the  corruption  of  the 
Church.  But  was  it  not  rather  their  duty — as  was  done  in  England — 
to  labor  iri  the  Church  for  its  reform  ?  When  the  ancient  prophets 
were  f-rced  to  cry,  "Help,  Lord,  for  the  godly  man  ceaseth  !"  did 
they  ever  think  olgo'ng  out  from  their  people,  and  establishing  a  new 
nation,  to  serve  God  in  greater  purity?  The  Reformers,  indeed,  hdve 
given  a  mournful  illustration  of  that  declaration  made  by  Irenaeus, 
with  regard  to  the  heretics  of  his  time — «'  No  correction  can  be  made 
by  them  so  great  as  is  the  mischief  of  schism."  Adv.  HcEres.  lib  iv.  c. 
33- 


EPISCOPACY  PROVED  EROM  HISTORY.  105 

through  the  Church  of  Rome,  and  that  this  form  of 
government  is  one  of  the  corruptions  introduced  by 
her.  We  have,  however,  shown  you,  we  think,  most 
fully,  that  it  existed  in  the  earliest  age,  when  the 
Bishop  of  Rome  had  no  more  authority  than  any 
other  Bishop  in  Catholic  Christendom.  But  suppose 
that  a  Church  should  now  be  discovered  in  some 
secluded  corner  of  the  world,  which  had  been  founded 
by  the  Apostles,  and  since  their  day  remained  cut 
off  from  other  Churches,  and  without  ever  having 
heard  of  the  Church  of  Rome ;  would  you  not  con- 
sider their  evidence  as  to  the  form  of  government 
handed  down  to  them  from  the  Apostles,  to  be  a 
conclusive  argument  on  this  point  ?  Yet  precisely 
such  an  instance  we  have.  When,  in  the  sixteenth 
century,  the  Portuguese  visited  Southern  India,  they 
were  agreeably  surprised  to  find,  on  the  coast  of 
Malabar,  a  Christian  nation,  with  upwards  of  a 
hundred  Churches.  But  when  they  became  ac- 
quainted with  the  simplicity  and  purity  of  their 
worship,  they  were  offended.  "These  Churches," 
said  they,  "  belong  to  the  Pope."  "  Who  is  the 
Popef  said  the  natives:  ^^  we  never  heard  of  him" 
The  tradition  handed  down  among  them  was,  that 
their  Church  had  been  founded  by  St.  Thomas. 
They  had  always  maintained  the  order  and  discipline 
of  Episcopal  jurisdiction,  and  for  1300  years  past  had 
enjoyed  a  succession  of  Bishops,  appointed  by  the 
Patriarch  of  Antioch.  "  We  " — said  they — •**  are  of 
the  true  faith,  whatever  you  from  the  west  may  be ; 
for  we  come  from  the  place  where  the  followers  of 
Christ  were  first  called  Christians." 

Refusing  to  subscribe  to  the  tenets  of  the  Church 


106         EPISCOPACY  PROVED    FROM  HISTORY. 

of  Rome,  or  to  exchange  for  her  form  of  service  the 
pure  liturgy  they  had  inherited,  persecution  was 
commenced,  and  some  of  their  clergy  seized,  and 
devoted  to  death  as  heretics.  They  were  accused  of 
the  following  practices  and  opinions, — which  are,  in 
truth,  some  of  the  points  on  which  we  also  differ  from 
the  Church  of  Rome — "  that  they  had  married  wives ; 
that  they  owned  but  two  Sacraments,  Baptism  and 
the  Lord's  Supper ;  that  they  neither  invoked  Saints, 
nor  worshipped  Images,  nor  believed  in  Purgatory ; 
and  that  they  had  no  other  orders  or  names  of  dig- 
nity in  tlie  Church,  than  Bishop,  Priest,  and  Deacon." 
The  Churches  on  the  sea-coast  were  thus  compelled 
to  acknowledge  the  supremacy  of  the  Pope  ;  but  they 
still  refused  to  pray  in  Latin,  and  insisted  on  retain- 
ing their  own  language  and  liturgy.  "  This  point " — 
they  said —  "  they  would  only  give  up  with  their 
lives."  The  Pope  therefore  compromised  with  them : 
Menezes  altered  their  liturgy,  but  they  retained  their 
Syriac  language,  and  have  a  Syriac  college  unto  this 
day.  These  are  called  the  Syro-Roman  Churches, 
and  are  principally  situated  on  the  sea-coast  Not 
so,  however,  with  those  in  the  interior.  They  refused 
to  yield  to  Rome — proclaimed  eternal  war  against 
the  Inquisition— hid  their  books-  fled  to  the  moun- 
tains, and  sought  the  protection  of  the  Native  Princes, 
who  had  always  been  proud  of  their  alliance. 

Two  centuries  then  elapsed  without  any  definite 
information  being  received  of  their  situation,  and  it 
even  began  to  be  doubted  whether  they  were  still  in 
existence.  In  1806,  however,  Dr.  Buchanan,  in  his 
missionary  travels,  again  found  them  in  the  interior, 
there  in  poverty  and  purity  maintaining  their  faith  in 


EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  HISTORY.  107 

the  seclusion  of  the  wilderness.  The  chain  of  their 
Episcopal  ministry  was  still  unbroken,  their  discipline 
was  orderly,  and  their  Scriptural  liturgy  pure  from 
the  corruptions  of  Rome.  He  thus  relates  part  of  a 
conversation  which  he  had  with  one  of  their  Bishops. 
"  The  Bishop  was  desirous  to  know  something  of  the 
other  Churches  which  had  separated  from  Rome.  I 
was  ashamed  to  tell  him  how  many  they  were.  I 
mentioned,  that  there  was  a  KasheesJia  or  Presbyter 
Church  in  our  own  Kingdom,  in  which  every  Ka- 
sheesha  was  equal  to  another.  '  Are  there  no  Shinti- 
sJianas  f  (Deacons  in  holy  orders.)  None.  *  And 
what,  is  there  nobody  to  overlook  the  Kasheeshas  ?' 
Not  one.  *  There  must  be  something  imperfect 
there,'  said  he."'^  It  was,  you  perceive,  a  matter  of 
surprise  to  him,  that  a  Church  could  exist  without  a 
Bishop,  and  he  justly  considered  it  as  wanting  the 
marks  of  its  Apostolicity.  Here  then,  is  an  argument 
coming  down  from  primitive  days  in  a  different 
channel. 

Such  then,  brethren,  is  the  historical  evidence. 
We  ask,  therefore,  if  these  three  orders  have  not  been 
in  the  Church  from  the  very  beginning,  when  were 
they  introduced  ?  This  is  a  question  which  those 
opposed  to  us  have  never  yet  answered.  We  are 
told,  in  general  terms,  that  at  first  all  ministers  were 
of  equal  rank  and  power  in  the  Church,  but  at  some 
period — when  they  know  not — some  managed  to 
usurp  authority,  and  thus  arose  the  order  of  Bishops, 
and  the  Episcopal  government,  f     And  yet  on  the 

*  Buchanan's  Christian  Researches  in  Asia,  pp.  69-71,  84.  Edit. 
New-York,  i8i2. 

t  The  only  writer  to  whom  they  can  pretend  to  refer,  is  Jerome,  a 
few  sentences  from  whose  works  they  endeavor  to  construe  in  their 


I08  EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  HISTORY. 

page  of  Ecclesiastical  history  it  is  impossible  to  point 
to  a  single  trace   of  this  great  change.     And  would 

favor.  Ill  his  Epistle  to  Evigr'tts,  he  says — "I  hear  th-^t  one  was  so 
hupudent  as  to  rank  Deacons  b^f^)r^  Presbyters,  that  is,  Bishops.  Now 
the  Apostle  plainly  declares  the  same  to  be  Presbyters,  who  also  are 
Bishops."  In  his  Comment  on  Titus,  i.  7,  he  writes — "The  same 
therefore  is  a  Presbyter,  who  also  is  a  Bishop  :  for  before  by  the 
instigation  of  the  Devil,  parties  were  formed  in  religion,  and  it  was 
said  by  the  people,  I  am  of  Pr.ul,  acd  I  of  ApoUos,  and  I  of  Cephas, 
the  Churches  were  governed  by  the  council  of  Presbyters.  But  after 
some  began  to  consider  those  which  he  had  baptized  to  be  his  own, 
not  Christ's,  it  was  decreed  throughout  the  whole  world,  that  one  be 
elected  who  should  be  put  over  the  rest  of  the  Presbyters.  ...  By 
degrees,  {paiilatim,)  that  every  sprout  of  dissension  might  be  rooted 
out,  all  the  authority  was  conferred  n^n  one  aione." 

I.  Let  us,  then,  examine  this  passage,  and  we  shall  find  it  proves 
nothing  against  us.  He  says— ist.  '*  The  same  were  Presbyters,  who 
also  were  Bishops."  This  he  himself  afterwards  explains  when  he 
adds — "  Because  in  the  Bi'shop  the  Presbyter  is  contained.  We  are 
advanced  from  the  less  to  the  greater."  2d.  When  does  he  si:y  the 
change  took  place  ?  "  When  people  said,  I  am  of  Paul,  &c." — that 
is,  in  the  very  days  of  the  Apostles.  3d.  He  asserts,  that  fixed 
Bishops  were  introduced  "  by  degrees  " — this  is  exactly  in  accordance 
with  the  Episcopal  theory.  As  the  Church  extended,  the  Apostles 
could  not  personally  superintend  it,  and  therefore,  "by  degrees" 
placed  others  over  the  Churches  with  the  same  power  they  had 
themselves  exercised,  as  increasing  dissensions  rendered  it  necessary. 
Such  in  brief  is  hi^  testimony. 

II.  He  has  here  a  particular  object  in  view,  to  oppose  those  who 
exalted  Deacons  to  a  level  with  Presbyters.  He  naturally,  therefore, 
uses  strong  language,  exalting  Presbyters  above  measure.  He  says 
— "  I  hear  that  one  was  so  impudent  as  to  rank  Deacons  above 
Presbyters,  &c." 

III.  In  every  ather  place,  he  distinctly  upholds  Episcopacy.  In 
this  very  Epistle,  in  elevating  Presbyters,  he  says—"  What  can  a 
Bishop  do,  that  a  Presbyter  may  not  do,  except  ordination  ?"  This 
is  all  we  ask.  And  again — "James,  after  the  pas;.ion  of  our  Lord, 
was  immediately,  by  the  Apostles,  ordained  Bishop  of  Jerusalem." 
{Oper.  t.  IV.  pars.  ii.  p.  102.)  Again — "  The  power  of  wealth,  or  the 
lowliness  of  poverty,  renders  a  Bishop  neither  more  nor  less  exalted  ; 
but  all  are  successors  of  the  Apostles."  {Ibid.  p.  802.)  On  the  45th 
Psalm,  he  says — "  Christ  hath  constituted  Bishops  to  be  the  chiefs  or 


EPISCOPACY    PROVED    FROM   HISTORY.        1 09 

the  Church,  which  contended  so  earnestly  with  re- 
gard to  the  day  of  celebrating  Easter,  or  the  reitera- 
tion of  the  baptism  of  heretics,  have  passed  it  over 
in  total  silence  ?  Every  minute  heresy — every  vary- 
ing shade  of  opinion  which  arose,  is  fully  dwelt  upon 
by  the  early  writers,  and  yet — except  those  two 
misinterpreted  sentences  in  Jerome — the  advocates 
of  parity  can  find  not  one  word — not  the  most 
distant  hint,  of  this  revolution  which  they  say  has 
taken  place,  and  which  in  that  case  would  have 
entirely  remodelled  the  government  of  the  whole 
Christian  Church  throughout  the  world.  We  ask 
you,  then,  whether  this  is  probable  ?  "  When  I  shall 
see" — says  Chillingworth — "all  the  fables  in  the 
metamorphosis  acted,  and  prove  true  stories ;  when 
I  shall  see  all  the  democracies  and  aristocracies  in 
the  world  lie  down  and  sleep,  and  awake  into  mon- 
archies ;  then  will  I  begin  to  believe,  that  presbyterial 
government,  having  continued  in  the  Church  during 
the  Apostles'  times,  should  presently  after,  (against 
the  Apostles'  doctrine,  and  the  will  of  Christ,)  be 
whirled  about  like  a  scene  in  a  mask,  and  transformed 
into  Episcopacy."* 

princes  of  the  Church,  in  all  parts  of  the  world."  If,  therefore,  he 
ever  writes  against  Episcopacy,  he  contradicts  himself. 

IV.  Jerome  personally  could  know  nothing  of  the  matter,  not  living 
until  nearly  three  hundred  years  after  the  death  of  the  Apostles.  We 
have  the  record  of  history  through  all  the  long  interval  between  the 
apostles'  and  his  day,  testifying  with  one  voice  to  the  existence  of 
Episcopacy. 

Here  then  is  the  sole  hope  of  the  Presbyterians.  It  is,  of  course, 
impossible  in  this  note  to  do  more  than  glance  at  this  passage.  The 
reader  will  find  it  fully  analyzed  and  discussed  in  Dr.  Bowdcii's  Let- 
ters to  Dr.  Milhr— letter  ist  of  ist  Series,  and  Letter  jth  of  2d 
Series.     Also  in  Slater'' s  Original  Draught. 

*  Works,  p.  525. 


no  EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  HISTORY. 

Again — Is  it  in  accordance  with  human  nature, 
that  all  the  clergy  of  the  Church,  in  every  country 
throughout  the  world,  should  simultaneously  have 
given  up  their  rights,  and  submitted  themselves  to 
some  among  their  number,  thus  creating  the  Episco- 
pal authority ;  and  that  all  this  should  have  been 
acquiesced  in  by  each  one  so  quietly,  and  performed 
so  silently,  that  history  nowhere  notices  the  change  ? 
"Imagine," — says  Chillingworth  again — "that  the 
spirit  of  Diotrephes  had  entered  into  some,  or  a  great 
many  of  the  Presbyters,  and  possessed  them  with  an 
ambitious  desire  of  a  forbidden  superiority,  was  it 
possible  they  should  attempt  and  achieve  it  at  once 
without  any  opposition  or  contradiction  ?  And 
besides,  that  the  contagion  of  this  ambition  should 
spread  itself  and  prevail  without  stop  or  control ; 
nay,  without  any  noise  or  notice  taken  of  it,  through 
all  the  Churches  in  the  world :  all  the  watchmen  in 
the  mean  time  being  so  fast  asleep,  and  all  the  dogs 
so  dumo,  that  not  so  much  as  one  should  open  his 
mouth  against  it  ?"^ 

Why,  try  this  argument  by  what  would  happen 
under  like  circumstances  in  this  day.  Suppose  that 
in  a  single  widely  extended  denomination  of  those 
around  us,  now  holding  to  an  equality  in  the  minis- 
try, it  should  be  proposed  to  make  this  change — that 
a  few  should  be  invested  with  the  authority  of  Bish- 
ops, and  all  the  rest  yield  to  them  in  obedience — 
how  long,  do  you  think,  it  would  take  to  produce 
this  alteration  ?  And  how  quietly  would  it  be  done  ? 
Why  protest  after  protest  would  be  entered  against 
it — their  fold  would  be  rent  asunder  with  dissensions 
*  Ibid.  p.  524. 


hriSCOFACY  PROVED  FROM  HIS  TORY.  Ill 

— and  it  would  be  found  recorded  upon  the  page  of 
their  history,  that  this  was  for  years  the  absorbing 
topic  of  debate.  And  yet  they  tell  us,  that  such  a 
change  did  once  actually  take  place  in  ancient  times, 
and  history  has  preserved  no  evidence  of  it.  No, 
brethren,  such  arguments  bear  with  them  their  own 
refutation.  Human  nature  then  was  precisely  what 
it  is  now,  and  in  similar  circumstances  would  have 
acted  as  it  now  does.  We  know,  therefore,  that  this 
power  of  the  Episcopate  must  have  been  from  the 
very  beginning- -must  have  been  sanctioned  by 
Apostolical,  nay,  by  Divine  aulhorily  or  it  never 
would  have  been  acquiesced  in  during  any  later  age. 
And  now,  I  submit  the  truth  of  Episcopacy  to 
your  judgment,  as  a  matter  of  fact.  I  appeal  away 
from  your  passions  and  your  prejudices,  and  resting 
this  subject  on  its  historical  evidence,  I  bring  it  to 
the  bar  of  your  reason.  And  think  not  that  this  is  a 
doctrine  held  only  by  a  small  minority.  Nine-tenths 
of  those  who  bear  the  Christian  name,  cling  to  it,  and 
avow  their  belief  in  the  three-fold  ministry  as  handed 
down  from  the  Apostles'  days.''^     Our  own  Church, 

*  Malle-brun,  in  his  Geography  (vol.  i.  p.  273),  has  the  following 

estimate  of  the  Christian  population  of  the  world  : — 

Tu«  r-u„.^u  „f  T^^ ,„      (    in  Europe,  88  millions,     ^ 

Ihe  Church  of  Kome,    \        ^    r  -i  o  ., 

'     j    out  of  Lurope,  28  " 

The  Greek  Church        -  .... 

The  Protestant  Cliurches  .... 

Total,  228 
Now,  out  of  the  42  millions  of  Protestants,  we  may  safely  set  down 
one-half  as  belonging  to  these  branches  of  the  Church — such  as  the 
Church  in  England  and  its  colonies,  Denmark,  this  country,  and 
among  the  Moravians  —  which  acknowledge  Episcopal  government. 
This  leaves,  therefore,  21  millions  of  Dissenters,  out  of  228  millions- 
less  than  one-tenth.     "  They,"  says  Manning,  "  that  are  concerned  to 


116 

millions. 

70 

(( 

42 

(( 

112         EPISCOPACY  PROVED    FROM  HISTORY. 

with  her  21  Bishops  and  her  1200  clergy,  scattered 
through  the  length  and  breadth  of  the  land,  every- 
where maintains  it  So  does  the  Church  of  England, 
planted  as  she  is  in  every  clime  and  on  every  shore.* 
The  Church  of  Rome,  amidst  all  the  corruptions  she 
has  admitted,  has  in  this  point  remained  steadfast  to 
ancient  truth.  The  many  millions  of  the  Greek 
Church,  spread  through  the  East,  have  never  doubted 
it ;  while  the  decayed  Oriental  Churches  of  Syria, 
Asia  Minor,  and  Ethiopia,  have,  even  in  their  fallen 
state,  found  in  their  government  the  sole  preservative 
for  the  little  spark  of  life  which  yet  remains.  Only 
a  small  portion  of  the  Christian  world  therefore  dis- 
sents.f 

establish  a  looser  theory  than  that  of  the  Catholic  Church,  how  numer- 
ous soever  when  taken  by  themselves,  are  a  small  fraction  of  the 
Christendom  of  to-day,  and  as  a  handful  compared  with  the  multi- 
tudes of  Christians  who  from  the  beginning  have  lived,  hoped,  suffered, 
and  died,  in  another  trust."  —  Unity  of  the  Church,  p.  288. 

*  "  The  Church  of  England,  in  the  preface  to  the  Ordination  Ser- 
vices, has  these  express  words  :  •  It  is  evident  unto  all  men  diligently 
reading  the  Holy  Scripture  and  ancient  authors,  that  from  the  Apos- 
tles' time  there  have  been  these  orders  of  Ministers  in  Christ's  Church — 
Bishops,  Priests,  and  Deacons,  &c.'  .  .  .  And  it  is  on  this  account 
that,  if  a  clergyman  of  the  Roman  Communion  does  in  this  country 
join  himself  to  the  English  Church,  his  ordination  is  accounted  good 
and  valiil,  because  the  Roman  Church  has  Episcopal  ordination,  and 
an  Apostolical  Ministry.  He  is  not  ordained  over  again,  but  simply 
licensed  by  a  Bishop  to  teach  and  preach  in  his  Diocese.  Whereas, 
if  a  Protestant  dissenter,  who  has  been  accustomed  to  call  himself  a 
minister  of  the  Gospel,  repents  of  his  schism,  and  is  anxious  to  become 
a  clergyman,  the  English  Church  considers  him  merely  as  a  layman, 
and  not  as  a  minister  of  the  Gospel  ;  and  makes  him  a  clergyman  by 
Episcopal  ordination." — Fabers''  Tract  on  '  The  one  Catholic  and 
Apostolic  Church,''  p.  18. 

t  There  is  a  body  of  Christians,  called  "Methodist  Episcopal,''^ 
which  we  have  not  included  in  this  list  ;  because,  although  they  have 
the  office  of  Bishop,  yet  it  is  in  name  only,  and  without  any  legitimate 
authority.     This  sect,  it  is  well  known,  was  founded  about  1730,  by 


EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  HISTORY.  II3 

Let  US  cling  then  to  this,  as  a  precious  inheritance 
which    has  come  down  to  us    through    1800  years. 

John  Wesley,  who  was  only  a  Presbyter  in  the  Church  of  England. 
After  professing  through  his  whole  life  that  he  did  not  intend  to 
abandon  the  Church,  or  create  a  schism,  whan  82  years  old,  he  was 
induced  to  lay  hands  on  Dr.  Coke,  and  thus  pretend  to  consecrate 
him  a  Bishop  for  America.  On  this  act,  his  brother,  Charles  Wesley, 
makes  these  remarks — "  How  was  he  surprised  into  so  rash  an  action  ? 
He  has  rcnoimced  the  principles  and  practices  of  his  -whole  life,  acted 
contrary  to  all  his  declarations,  protestations,  and  writings,  robbed  his 
friends  of  their  boasting,  realized  the  Nag's  Head  ordination,  and 
left  an  indelible  blot  on  his  name  as  long  as  it  shall  be  remembered.  .... 
What  will  become  of  these  poor  sheep  in  the  wilderness,  the  American 
Methodists?  How  have  they  been  betrayed  into  a  separation  from 
tlie  Church  of  England,  which  their  preachers  and  they  no  more 
intended  than  the  Methodists  here !  Had  they  had  patience  a  little 
longer,  they  would  have  seen  A  real  primitive  Bishop  in  America, 
duly  consecrated  by  three  Scotch  Bishops  [referring  to  Bishop  Sea- 
bury."  His  ordincttion  would  be  indeed  genuine,  valid,  and  Epis- 
copal.^^ 

Dr.  Coke  himsel.f  felt  his  ordination  to  be  invalid,  and  often  by  his 
acts  admitted  it.  For  instance,  in  1791,  he  applied  to  Bishop  White, 
for  the  Methodist  Society  to  be  received  into  the  Church,  and  their 
preachers  re-ordained,  thus  acknovi'ledging  the  invalidity  of  their 
ordination  received  from  him.  (See  his  letter  in  Bp.  Whitens  Me- 
moirs of  the  Church,  p.  345.)  In  a  subsequent  interview  he  suggested 
that  he  himself  should  be  elevated  to  the  Episcopate  (p.  170).  Still 
later  in  the  same  year,  he  made  a  similar  proposal  to  Bishop  Seabury. 
Eight  years  afterwards,  he  made  written  application  to  the  Bishop  of 
London,  to  ordain  some  travelling  preachers  in  England,  to  adminis- 
ter the  Sacraments  to  their  people.  Again,  in  1813,  he  made  the 
greatest  efforts  to  procure  consecration  for  himself  as  a  Bishop  of  the 
Church,  to  be  sent  to  India,  writing  a  most  extraordinary  letter  to 
Wilberforce,  setting  forth  his  own  good  qualities.  (See  this  in 
lVilberforce''s  Correspondence,  Y.  i.,  date  April  14,  1813.)  He  offers 
to  return  most  fully  and  faithfully  into  the  bosom  of  the  Established 
Church,  and  do  everything  in  his  power  to  promote  its  interests, 
and  submit  to  all  such  restrictions  in  the  fulfilment  of  his  office  as 
the  government  and  the  bench  of  Bishops  at  home  should  think 
necessary."  Failing  in  this,  he  was  obliged  to  settle  down  for  life 
with  the  conviction  that  his  office  was  a  pretence,  and  his  Episcopal 
shield  deformed  by  the  bend  sinister. 


114         EPISCOPACY   PROVED    FROM  HISTORY. 

Everything  else  has  altered,  but  the  government 
which  our  Lord  instituted  in  His  Church  is  still 
unchanged.  Century  after  century,  the  dark  and 
troublous  stream  of  Time  has  swept  by,  its  waters 
choked  with  the  wrecks  of  all  that  earth  admires. 
Nations  and  peoples,  courts  and  dynasties,  have 
played  their  part,  and  then  been  seen  no  more.  The 
mighty  monarchies  of  the  Elder  World  have  long 
since  passed  away — the  kingdoms  which  were  the 
early  cotemporaries  of  the  Church  —  those  which 
beheld  the  dawn  of  her  youth — now  live  only  on  the 
page  of  History — yet  she  still  rides  the  waves,  and 
as  she  passed  along,  has  made  all  tributaries  to  her- 
self, gathering  from  each  spoils  to  enrich  her  Master — 
jewels  to  gleam  in  His  unfading  diadem.  With  her 
hopes  now  just  as  bright  and  glorious  as  ever,  she 
remains  in  her  organization  what  she  was  in  the 
Apostles'  days.  The  same  Episcopal  government 
which  Timothy  then  exercised  at  Ephesus,  and  Titus 
in  Crete,  and  which  they  "  committed  to  faithful 
men,"  is  now  with  us  in  this  distant  land,  of  whose 
very  existence  they  were  ignorant. 

We  feel,  then,  that  as  members  of  this  Church 
we  belong  to  a  cause  which  in  the  end  must  triumph. 
"  The  heathen  may  rage,  and  the  people  imagine  a 
vain  thing — the  Icings  of  the  earth  may  stand  up,  and 
the  rulers  take  counsel  together " — yet  the  Church 

Thus,  then,  stands  the  case.  Wesley  attempted  to  invest  Dr.  Coke 
with  an  office  which  he  had  no  authority  to  confer.  Colte  ordained 
Asbury,  and  from  him  all  the  Methodist  preachers  in  this  country 
derive  their  ordination.  But  Asbury  was  of  course  nothing  but  a 
layman  through  life,  and  therefore  those  on  whom  he  laid  hands  are 
in  the  same  condition.  Such,  then,  is  Methodism  in  this  country — 
without  a  Church  or  a  Mniistry. 


EFISCOPACY   PROVED    FROM    HISTORY.       II5 

they  cannot  overcome.  *'  There  shall  no  divination 
prosper  against  Israel."  He  who  is  its  Protector 
"  shall  laugh  them  to  scorn,  and  its  Lord  shall  have 
them  in  derision."  Yes,  brethren,  the  past  may  be 
with  us  a  pledge  for  the  future.  If  for  eighteen 
centuries  the  Apostolic  Church  has  breasted  the 
storm,  and  uninjured,  unchanged,  come  down  to  us — 
if  now  we  trace  in  every  lineament,  that  here  is  the 
same  Church  which  existed  in  "  our  fathers'  days, 
and  in  the  old  time  before  them " — then  we  may 
believe  that  thus  she  shall  continue  to  go  on  in  the 
greatness  of  her  strength,  until  the  trumpet  of  the 
Archangel  proclaims  that  her  warfare  on  earth  is 
accomplished.  Her  ancient  ministry  shall  never  be 
wanting.  Her  holy  succession  of  Bishops  shall  be 
uninterrupted,  till  the  last  who  bears  that  sacred 
office  stands  amidst  the  ruins  of  a  crumbling  world.'^ 
Unless  it  shall  be  so,  what  meant  our  Lord's  parting 
promise  to  His  Apostles — "  Lo,  I  am  with  you 
ahvays,  even  unto  the  endoftJie  zvorld"?  It  could 
not  have  been  restricted  to  those  only  who  heard  it, 
for  they  have  long  since  passed  away.  Unless,  then, 
they  left  their  successors,  who  are  to  keep  up  the 
unbroken  chain  "  even  unto  the  end  of  the  world," 
we  know  not  who  are  to  inherit  the  benefits  which 
our  Master's  words  seem  to  promise. 

Are  we  then  united   with  this  Church — not  only 

*  "Remarkable  and  positive  promises  clearly  establish  the  per- 
petuity of  the  Church  ;  and  it  may  also  be  inferred  easily  from  the 
promise  made  to  the  faithful  servant,  whom  the  Lord  should  set  over 
His  household  :  '  Blessed  is  that  servant  whom  his  Lord,  w/ien  He 
Cometh,  shall  find  so  doing.'  In  which  words  it  is  intimated,  tliat  when 
Christ  shall  come  in  the  latter  day,  He  shall,  even  then,  find  faithful 
servants  presiding  over  His  own  houseliold,  still  existing  upon  the 
earth." — Faiuur^s  Treatise  on  the  Churchy  v,  i.  p.  31. 


Il6        EPISCOPACY  PROVED  FROM  HISTORY. 

outwardly,  but  also  in  heart  and  spirit  ?  Are  we 
sharing  in  her  trials  here,  that  we  may  partake  of 
her  triumph  hereafter  ?  Shall  we,  in  the  hour  of  her 
glory,  stand  with  her  upon  the  holy  mountain,  and 
help  to  upraise  that  anthem  which  the  redeemed 
shall  sing  forever  ?  Christian  warrior !  the  conflict 
is  raging  around  you — the  Church  is  summoning  you 
to  her  aid — the  voices  of  Apostles,  and  martyrs,  and 
confessors,  come  down  to  you  from  the  ages  of  a 
distant  antiquity,  urging  you  to  live  for  this  cause 
for  which  they  were  willing  even  to  die.  Will  you 
turn  away  from  this  appeal  ?  Will  you  prove  re- 
creant to  this  high  trust  ?  Your  daily,  hourly  life  is 
furnishing  the  answer. 


IV. 

ANTIQUITY  OF  FORMS  OF  PRAYER. 

Then,  fainting  soul,  arise  and  sing, 
Mount,  but  be  sober  on  the  wing  ; 
Mount  up,  for  Hearen  is  won  by  prayer, 
Be  sober,  for  thou  art  not  there. 

Keble. 

The  foundation  of  all  true  devotion  is  reverence. 
Remembering  the  lowliness  of  our  own  state,  and 
th-e  awful  majesty  of  Him  in  whose  presence  our 
petitions  are  uttered,  our  spirits  should  be  bowed 
within  us,  and  we  realize,  while  in  His  sanctuary, 
that  "  this  is  none  other  but  the  House  of  God,  and 
this  is  the  gate  of  Heaven."  The  question  then  in- 
voluntarily rises  to  our  lips  — "  Wherewith  shall  I 
come  before  the  Lord,  and  bow  myself  before  the 
high  God  ?"**  And  the  answer  which  Scripture 
gives  us,  is  in  these  words  of  caution — "  Be  not  rash 
with  thy  mouth,  and  let  not  thy  heart  be  hasty  to 
utter  anything  before  God  ;  for  God  is  in  Heaven, 
and  thou  upon  earth ;  therefore  let  thy  words  be 
few."f- 

In  the  spirit  of  this  exhortation  the  Church  has 
always  acted,  when  she  prescribed  a  Liturgy,  by 
which  her  members,  in  their  public  assemblies,  were 
commanded  to  worship  God,  instead  of  trusting  to 
the  extemporane'ous  effusions  of  the  moment.  And 
this  is  a  peculiarity  which  still  marks  her  services, 
and  which,    perhaps,  more   forcibly  than    anything 

*  Micah  vi.  6.  f  Eccles.  v.  2. 


Il8  ANTIQUITY   OF  FORMS    OF  PRAYER. 

else,  would  strike  a  casual  observer.  In  her  public 
devotions,  he  finds  everything  definitely  arranged  and 
settled  ;  while  in  the  difierent  denominations  around 
her  the  prayers  are  left  to  be  composed  as  they  are 
uttered  by  him  v/ho  may  happen  to  minister  to  them. 
As,  therefore,  the  charge  is  often  made,  that  to  have 
an  established  ritual  for  public  worship  leads  neces- 
sarily to  coldness  and  formality,  an  examination  of 
this  subject  is  one  which  is  interesting  to  us  as 
Churchmen. 

The  first  and  most  natural  inquiry  is,  as  to  the 
authority  for  a  Liturgy.  Is  it  sanctioned  by  Scrip- 
ture— by  the  example  of  our  Lord,  and  the  custom 
of  the  early  Church  ?  If  so,  surely  none  can  now 
object  to  it  as  wrong  or  even  inexpedient.  What 
our  Lord  authorized  by  his  own  example,  and  the 
Church  in  her  first  and  purest  ages  continued  to 
practise,  it  may  be  safe  for  us  to  follow.  We  cer- 
tainly cannot  do  better  than  tread  in  their  footsteps. 

Our  first  argument  then  is — tliat  the  entire  zvorship 
of  the  Jewish  Church,  as  commanded  by  God,  and  as 
practised  for  ages,  was  in  prescribed  forms.  On 
every  occasion  in  which  the  people  were  required 
with  one  voice  to  offer  their  praises  to  God,  or  to 
entreat  His  forgiveness,  we  find  them  doing  so  in  the 
words  of  a  previously  written  form. 

Thus,  when  the  Israelites  had  passed  the  Red  Sea 
in  safety,  and  paused  awhile  upon  their  march  to 
chant  their  song  of  victory,  we  find  their  leader 
composing  for  them  that  noble  ode,  which  the  Holy 
Ghost  compares  with  the  Heavenly  song  of  those  v/ho 
have  obtained  the  last  great  triumph  over  all  spiritual 
enemies — the  once  suffering,  now  ransomed  followers 


ANTIQUITY  OF  FORMS    OF  FRAYER.  1 19 

of  the  Lamb/^  "It  was  fitted  for  alternate  recitation, 
with  musical  accompaniments."-}-  Moses  begins  the 
song,  and  in  the  first  two  hemistichs  states  its  object — 

*  Sing  ye  to  the  Lord,  for  He  hath  triumphed  gloriously  ; 
The  horse  and  his  rider  hath  He  thrown  into  the  sea.'  " 

And  we  learn  from  v.  21,  that  these  two  lines 
became  the  grand  chorus  of  the  piece,  and  were 
probably  repeated  at  intervals,  after  the  people  had 
recited  each  mercy  bestowed  upon  their  nation. 
"  And  Miriam  answered  them — 

'  Sing  ye  to  the  Lord,  for  He  hath  triumphed  gloriously  ; 
The  horse  and  his  rider  hath  He  thrown  into  the  sea.'  "J 

This  song  was,  therefore,  used  responsively,  in  the 
same  way  in  which  we  now  recite  the  Psalter  in  our 
service. 

When,  again,  in  the  wilderness,  their  publ-ic  wor- 
ship was  arranged  by  the  express  commands  of  God, 
we  find  that  forms  were  provided  for  every  occasion. 
Thus,  Aaron  and  his  sons  are  enjoined  to  use  these 
words,  in  blessing  the  people — "  On  this  wise  ye 
shall  bless  the  children  of  Israel:  The  Lord  bless 
thee,  and  keep  thee ;  the  Lord  make  His  face  to 
shine  upon  thee,  and  be  gracious  unto  thee ;  the 
Lord  lift  up  His  countenance  upon  thee,  and  give 
thee  peace."  This  was  the  authorized  form  of  bene- 
diction, and  the   declaration   is  added — "  They  shall 

*  "  And  I  saw  as  it  were  a  sea  of  glass,  mingled  with  fire  :  and 
them  that  had  gotten  the  victory  over  the  beast,  and  over  his  image, 
and  over  his  mark,  and  over  the  number  of  his  name,  stand  on  the  sea 
of  glass,  having  the  harps  of  God.  And  they  sing  the  song  of  Moses 
the  servant  of  God,  and  the  song  of  the  Lamb."     Rev.  xv.  2,  3. 

f  Bishop  Jcbb's  Sacred  Literature,  p.  10. 

X  This  is  the  view  given  by  Dr.  Kennicott,  in  his  arrangement  of 
this  song,  and  also  by  Bishop  Lowth.  Prcelect  19.  They  show  th 
difierent  intervals  at  which  the  chorus  probably  came  in. 


I20  ANTIQUITY   OF  FORMS    OF  PRAYER. 

put  my  name,  saith  the  Lord,  upon  the  children  of 
Israel,  and  I  will  bless  them."  (Num.  vi.  24, 
27.) 

In  the  book  of  Deuteronomy  are  recorded  various 
forms  to  be  used  by  the  people  on  different  public 
solemnities.  Such  is  the  confession  the  Israelite  was 
to  make  when  offering  the  basket  of  first-fruits — 
"  And  thou  shalt  speak  and  say  before  the  Lord  thy 
God — A  Syrian  ready  to  perish  was  my  father,"  &c. 
(xxvi.  5- 1 1.)  Such  also  is  the  prayer  he  was  to  use 
when  offering  his  third  year's  tithes — "  Then  thou 
shalt  say  before  the  Lord  thy  God,"  &c.  (v.  12-15.) 
With  equal  accuracy  is  prescribed  the  form  of  depre- 
cation to  be  uttered  by  the  elders  of  a  city  near 
which  a  murder  had  been  committed,  in  protesting 
their  own  innocence — "  Our  hands  have  not  shed  this 
blood,  neither  have  our  eyes  seen  it.  Be  merciful,  O 
Lord,  unto  thy  people  Israel,  whom  thou  hast 
redeemed,  and  lay  not  innocent  blood  to  thy  people 
of  Israel's  charge."     (xxi.  v.  7.) 

Thus,  by  examining  the  ancient  books  of  the  law, 
we  could  show  that  provision  was  made  for  every 
portion  of  their  regular  services.  And  on  extraordi- 
nary occasions  it  is  evident  that  something  was  in 
like  manner  written  for  their  use,  to  meet  the  exi- 
gency. Such  was  the  case  with  the  prayer  of 
Solomon  at  the  dedication  of  the  Temple,  a  copy  of 
which  was  preserved  among  the  records  of  the 
nation.  "The  regular  construction  of  the  whole 
prayer,  the  formal  division  of  the  subject,  together 
with  the  continued  series  and  almost  poetical  arrange- 
ment of  the  versicles  in  the  original,  scarcely  seem 


ANTIQUITY  OF  FORMS   OF  PRAYER.  12 1 

compatible  Avith  extemporaneous  devotion,  and  obvi- 
ously suggests  the  idea  of  previous  composition."* 

But  let  us  look  at  the  usual  worship  of  the  Temple, 
and  of  what  did  it  consist  ?  From  the  minute 
accounts  of  the  Hebrew  Rabbis  which  have  come 
down  to  us,  we  learn  that  it  was  composed  of  the 
Sacrifices,  Liturgical  Compositions,  and  Psalms.f 
But  it  is  evident  that  the  Psalms  are  nothing  but 
forms  of  prayer,  and  are  in  most  cases  direct  and 
solemn  addresses  to  the  Supreme  Being,  In  this 
way  they  were  used  in  the  Jewish  Church,  and  we 
can  often  learn  from  their  titles  alone,  that  they  were 
appointed  to  be  recited  by  the  congregation  on  par- 
ticular days.  This  collection  was  probably  first 
arranged  definitely  by  King  David,  who  added  so 
much  as  to  gain  for  himself  the  title  of  "  the  sweet 
singer  of  Israel."  It  was  afterwards  remodelled  by 
Hezekiah,  of  whom  it  is  said^-'"'  Moreover,  Hezekiah 
the  king,  and  the  princes,  commanded  the  Levites 
to  sing  praises  unto  the  Lord,  zuith  the  zvords  of 
David  and  of  Asaph  the  seer  ;  and  they  sang  praises 
with  gladness,  and  they  bowed  their  heads  and  wor- 
shipped.":}: The  last  changes  in  the  Psalmody  of 
the  nation  were  made  by  Ezra,  after  the  captivity. 
Did  then  the  adoption  of  these  devotional  services 
lead  to  mere  formality  ?  If  so,  why  is  not  the  same 
effect  produced  upon  those  who  now  can  address  the 
Deity  in  metrical  hymns,  yet  whose  scruples  prevent 
them  from  using  a  form,  if  it  be  in  prose  ?§ 

•  Sinclair's  Dissertations,  p.  8. 

t  Tiie  reader  will  find  the  whole  service,  with  its  prayers  and 
arrangement  of  Psalms,  accurately  given  by  Lightfool,  in  his  Temple 
Service,  ch.  7.  p.  59.  \  2  Chron.  xxix,  30. 

§  "  Unless  it  can  be  proved  that  the  fault  and  evil  which  is  es- 


122  ANTIQUITY  OF  FORMS    OF   PRAYER. 

But  this  is  not  all.  We  have  direct  evidence  that 
at  various  periods  during  the  existence  of  the  Jewish 
nation,  their  prophets  and  holy  men  composed 
prayers  to  be  used  in  their  public  worship.  Thus, 
after  the  return  from  Babylon,  Ezra  prepared  eighteen 
collects,  for  confession,  supplication,  thanksgiving, 
and  intercession.  These,  under  the  title  of  Ezra's 
Benedictions,  are  still  found  in  the  Prayer  Books  of 
the  Jews.  Maimonides,  a  learned  Rabbi,  says — 
"  Ezra  composed  these  eighteen  forms  of  prayer, 
which  were  enjoined  by  the  great  council :  that  every 
man  might  have  them  in  his  mouth,  and  be  perfect 
in  them,  and  that  thereby  the  prayers  of  the  rude 
and  ignorant  might  be  as  complete  as  those  of  a 
more  eloquent  tongue."  And  then,  after  stating  the 
custom  which  prevailed,  that  the  people  should  say 
"  Amen  "  at  the  conclusion,  he  adds — "  This  is  only 
in  those  cases  where  the  people  are  not  perfect  in  the 
prayers,  and  cannot  say  the  same  by  heart  ;  for  they 
who  can  repeat  the  prayers,  do  not  discharge  their 
duty  as  they  ought,  in  case  they  tliemselves  do  not 
pray  with  the  public  minister."*  These  prayers 
have  all  been  translated  by  Dr.  Prideaux,  and  are  to 
be  found  in  his  Connection  of  Scripture  History. \ 

sential  to  a  form  in  prose,  is  entirely  removed  if  the  substance  of  the 
obnoxious  form  be  expressed  in  metre  and  chime — 
Crito  freely  will  rehearse 
P'orms  of  prayer  and  praise  in  verse  : 
Why  should  Crito  then  suppose 
Forms  are  sinful  when  in  prose  ? 
Must  my  form  be  deemed  a  crime, 
Merely  for  the  want  of  rhyme?" 

Newton'' s  Apologia,  p.  14. 
•  Maimon.  apud  Seld.  in  Eutych.  Alex.  p.  43. 
t  Part  I,  book  vi.  p.  375. 


ANTIQUITY    OF    FORMS    OF    PRAYER.         1 23 

And  SO  it  was  also  in  the  worship  of  the  Syna- 
gogue, The  service  there  differed  somewhat  from 
that  of  the  Temple,  for  no  sacrifices  were  offered  up. 
It  consisted  of  three  parts :  prayers,  reading  cf  the 
Scriptures,  and  preaching  from  them.  Here  also  the 
prayers  were  by  stated  forms,  the  most  solemn  and 
ancient  of  which  were  the  prayers  of  Ezra/"  To 
these — as  we  learn  from  Justin  Martyr — they  added, 
just  before  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem,  a  nineteenth 
collect,  praying  against  the  new  sect  of  the  Nazarenes, 
whom  they  denominated  apostates  and  heretics. f 

In  addition,  as  we  are  informed  by  Jewish  writers, 
their  Ritual  provided  for  all  those  occurrences  which 
mark  the  changes  in  domestic  life — for  those  solemni- 
ties of  their  religion  which  were  performed  at  home 
— for  times  of  joy  and  sorrow — for  the  Passover— the 
marriage,  and  the  burial.:}:  And  many  of  these  had 
been  handed  down  from  a  remote  antiquity.  The 
Samaritan  Chronicle  speaks  of  a  book  of  prayers 
used  by  the  Jews  at  their  sacrifices,  "  from  the  time 
of  their  legate  Moses  until  that  day  ;"§  and  Josephus 
asserts,  that  at  the  period  in  which  he  lived,  the  sect 
of  the  Essenes  made  use  of  prayers  "  received  tradi- 
tionally from  their  fathers."!  Nor  has  the  lapse  of 
eighteen  centuries  entirely  changed  their  customs. 
Could  you  now  meet  with  the  feeble,  dispersed  rem- 
nant of  Israel,  scattered  as  they  are  throughout  all 
the  world,  yet  everywhere  cleaving  to  their  fore- 
fathers' rites — could  you  see  them  in  their  private 
services,  or  when   on  the  Seventh    Day  they  have 

*  Bingham's  Orig.  Eccles.  lib.  xiii.  chap.  5,  sect.  4. 

t  Dial,  cum  Tryph.  p.  335.  %  Sinclair's  Dissertation,  p.  10. 

§  Sinclair's  Dissertation,  p.  11        ||  De  Bello  Jud.  lib.  ii.  chap.  12. 


124  ANTIQUITY    OF  FORMS  OF  PRAYER. 

gathered  in  their  Synagogues — you  would  hear  the 
same  words  of  the  Hebrew  Psalter  chanted  forth,  and 
the  same  ancient  prayers  of  their  Liturgy  offered  up, 
with  which  two  thousand  years  ago  their  fathers 
worshipped,  in  the  days  of  their  pride  and  power.* 
We  perceive  then  how  fully  established  under  the  Old 
Dispensation,  and  how  entirely  authorized  by  God 
— nay,  especially  commanded  by  Him — was  the  use 
of  forms  of  prayer.  If,  then,  these  were  enjoined 
upon  the  Jew,  is  it  wrong  in  the  Christian  in  this  way 
to  worship  the  same  God  ? 

But  the  Old  Dispensation,  we  are  answered,  was  a 
day  of  rites  and  ceremonies — a  day  when  the  human 
mind  was  in  bondage,  "  subject  to  ordinances."  We 
are  directed  to  look  to  the  coming  of  our  Lord  for 
that  spiritual  freedom  which  was  then  bestowed  upon 
the  world.  He  was  indeed  our  Great  Exemplar, 
and  we  may  well  mark  His  course,  as  He  travelled 
on  in  His  earthly  pilgrimage,  and  in  all  respects 
humbly  walk  in  His  footsteps.  Can  we  then  gather 
anything  from  His  life  to  aid  us  in  this  investigation  ? 
We  can,  and  therefore  we  set  forth  the  argument 
that  the  7ise  of  forms  of  prayer  in  public  worsJdp  zuas 
sanctioned  by  our  Lord  ivJiile  on  earth,  both  by  precept 
and  example. 

We  have  already  shown  you  that  the  worship  of 
the  Jews,  both  in  the  Temple  and  the  Synagogue, 
was  according  to  a  prescribed  Liturgy.  And  yet 
our  Lord  always  attended  these  services,  and  scrupu- 
lously joined  in  their  public  devotions.  On  all  the 
great   Feasts    He   went   up    to   Jerusalem  with    His 

*  See  the  Prayers  of  the  Jews  as  they  are  now  used,  translated  in 
Home's  Intro i.  to  Scrip,  v.  iii.  p.  250-3. 


ANTIQUITY    OF    FORMS    OF   PRAYER.  125 

disciples,  while  Sabbath  after  Sabbath  He  appeared 
so  regularly  in  the  Synagogue,  that  His  watchful 
enemies,  while  seeking  every  occasion  to  charge  Him 
with  opposition  to  the  Law,  never  brought  forward 
the  accusation  of  neglecting  their  appointed  worship. 
But  had  there  been  anything  wrong  in  the  manner 
in  which  this  was  performed^ — had  the  Liturgical 
Service  been  merely  a  corruption  introduced  by  the 
Scribes  and  Pharisees  —  would  He,  think  you,  have 
been  backward  in  denouncing  the  innovation,  and 
restoring  the  service  to  its  ancient  simplicity  ?  No, 
brethren;  had  there  been  coldness  or  formality  in 
this  custom,  the  same  zeal  which  led  our  Master  to 
drive  from  the  Temple  "  the  money-changers,  and 
those  that  sold  doves,"  would  have  impelled  Him 
also  to  rebuke  the  priests  for  the  want  of  spirituality 
in  their  worship.  But  He  did  not :  on  the  contrary, 
He  fully  countenanced  it ;  and  therefore  it  cannot  be 
wrong  or  inexpedient. 

In  that  solemn  hour,  too,  when  the  Paschal  Sup- 
per was  just  closing,  and  our  Lord  "  sang  a  hymn  " 
with  His  disciples,  before  He  went  forth  to  the  last 
scene  of  His  trial  and  agony,  we  know  from  the 
voice  of  tradition,  and  the  concurrence  of  all  antiquity, 
that  He  adopted,  as  was  natural,  the  particular  form 
always  made  use  of  by  the  Jews  at  the  end  of  the 
Passover.  It  was  called  the  Great  Hallely  or  hymn 
of  praise,  and  consisted  of  Psalms  cxv.  to  cxviii. 
inclusive.*     So  was  it  also  amid  the  fearful  sufferings 

*  Lightfooi's  Temple  Service,  ch.  xiii.  Jahn's  Bib.  Archaeology, 
p.  449.  Home's  Introd.  to  Script,  vol.  iii.  p.  306.  Dr.  Adam  Clark, 
in  his  Commentary  on  Matt.  xxvi.  30,  makes  it  begin  with  Ps.  cxiii. 
He  says,  "  As  to  the  Hymn  itself,  we  know  from  the  universal  con- 
sent of  Jewish   antiquity  that  it   was  composed  of  Psalms  cxiii.  to 


126  ANTIQUITY  OF  FORMS   OF  PRAYFR. 

of  the  Cross.  When  His  human  nature  was,  as  it 
were,  crushed  by  the  sorrows  heaped  upon  Him, 
the  words  which  seemed  naturally  to  rise  to  His  lips 
were  those  of  the  Psalter.  The  inquiry — "  My  God, 
my  God,  why  hast  Thou  forsaken  me  ?"  is  the  com- 
mencement of  the  2 2d  Psalm  ;  and  the  words  which 
last  he  uttered — "  Into  thy  hands  I  commend  my 
spirit,"  compose  the  5th  verse  of  the  31st  Psalm. 
Thus,  in  the  language  of  the  divines  of  Leyden — 
"  Christ,  while  suspended  from  the  Cross,  used  that 
golden  form  of  prayer  which  David,  as  His  prototype, 
had  composed."* 

Another  strong  proof  of  our  Lord's  sanction  is 
derived  from  that  model  of  devotion  which  He  Him- 
self gave  to  His  disciples.  John  the  Baptist  had 
taught  his  followers  to  pray  by  a  set  form,  and  the 
little  household  of  believers  who  had  gathered  around 
our  Master,  and  composed  the  Early  Church,  re- 
quested Him  also  to  do  the  same.  Their  petition 
was — "  Lord,  teach  us  to  pray,  as  John  also  taught 

cxviii.,  termed  by  the  Jews,  Hallel.  .  .  These  six  Psalms  were  always 
sung  at  every  Paschal  solemnity." 

Jacob  Abbott,  in  his  Corner- Slone,  ends  his  description  of  the  last 
Passover  with  a  pathetic  appeal  to  St.  John.  "  '  And  when  they  had 
sung  a  hymn,  they  went  out  into  the  Mount  of  Olives.'  What  could 
have  Ijcen  their  hymn  ?  Its  sentiments  and  feelings,  they  who  can 
appreciate  the  occasion  may  perhaps  conceive  ;  but  what  were  its 
words  ?  Beloved  disciple  I  why  didst  thou  vot  record  them  ?  They 
should  have  been  sung  in  every  nation,  and  language,  and  clime.  We 
should  have  fixed  them  in  our  hearts,  and  taught  them  to  our  children, 
and  when  we  came  together  to  commemorate  our  Redeemer's  suffer- 
ings, we  should  never  have  separated  without  singing  his  parting 
hymn."     (p.  219.) 

A  very  slight  knowledge  of  Jewish  antiquities  might  have  pointed 
out  to  Mr.  Abbott  what  was  probably  the  form  which  he  wishes  to 
have  so  extensively  adopted. 

*  Sinclair's  Dissertation,  p.  12. 


ANTIQUITY  OF  FORMS  OF   PRAYER.  1 27 

his  disciples."  And  what  did  He  answer?  Did  He 
tell  them,  in  all  cases  to  trust  to  the  passing  feelings 
of  the  moment,  and  to  shun  as  coldness  everything 
which  is  not  extemporaneous  ?  No ;  He  at  once 
prescribed  that  form  now  known  by  the  name  of  the 
Lord's  Prayer,  and  which  the  Church  has  since  in 
all  ages  continued  to  use  in  her  worship.  It  is  a 
most  striking  fact,  too,  that  every  single  sentence  in 
this  prayer  is  taken  from  the  Jewish  Liturgies,  with 
which  the  disciples  were  already  familiar.*  "  So 
far,"  says  Grotius,  "  was  the  Lord  Himself  of  the 
Christian  Church  from  all  affectation  of  unnecessary 
novelty."  What  stronger  confirmation,  then,  could 
He  give  of  His  approval  }  And  should  we  not  be 
contented  to  follow  in  the  steps  of  our  Divine  Master 
— to  worship  as  He  did — and  in  accordance  with  the 
example  which  He  sets,  to  "  hold  fast  the  form  of 
sound  words,"  when  we  approach  our  God  ? 

Our  next  argument  is  derived  from  the  uniform 
practice  of  tJie  Primitive  CJuirch.  The  early  disciples 
followed  the  example  of  the  Jewish  Church,  which 
their  Lord  had  thus  sanctioned,  and  adopted  forms 
of  prayer  suited  to  the  wants  of  the   Church  under 

*  Abundant  proof  of  this  can  be  found  in  Lightfoot  (on  Matt.  ix. 
9-13)  and  the  works  of  several  other  learned  men.  Mr.  Gregory  has 
collected  the  expressions  out  of  the  differeut  Jewish  Euchologies,  and 
thus  translated  them  : — 

"  Our  Father,  which  art  in  Heaven,  be  gracious  unto  us  !  O  Lord 
our  God,  hallowed  b2  Thy  name,  and  let  the  remembrance  of  Thee 
be  glorified  in  Heaven  above,  and  upon  earth  here  below.  Let  thy 
kingdom  reign  over  us,  n  )w  and  for  ever.  The  holy  men  of  old  said, 
remit  and  forgive  unto  all  men  whatsoever  they  have  done  against 
me.  And  lead  us  not  into  temptation,  but  deliver  us  from  the  evil 
thing.  For  thine  is  the  kingdom,  and  thou  shalt  reign  in  glory  for 
ever  and  for  evermore."     Homers  hitrod.  to  Scrip,  v.  iii.  p.  296.    . 


128  ANTIQUITY  OF  FORMS  OF  PRAYER. 

the  new  dispensation.  In  the  fourth  chapter  of  the 
Acts  is  an  ApostoUc  form  of  Prayer.  It  was  dehvered 
on  the  return  of  Peter  and  John  from  the  Jewish 
council,  when,  in  the  assembly  of  their  brethren,  they 
"  reported  all  that  the  chief  priests  and  elders  had 
said  unto  them."  We  are  told,  "when  they  heard 
that,  they  lifted  up  their  voices  to  God  with  one 
accord,"- and  in  (what  Bishop  Jcbb  calls)  "this  noble 
supplicatory  hymn ;  poured  forth  at  once  by  the 
whole  Christian  people,"  they  returned  thanks  for  the 
past,  and  begged  strength  for  the  future.  We  give 
the  same  distinguished  writer's  version  of  the  paral- 
lelisms— * 

1.  O  Lord,  thou  art  the  God, 

Who  didst  make  Heaven  and  earth. 

And  the  sea,  and  all  things  that  aie  in  them  ; 

Who,  by  the  mouth  of  thy  servant  David,  didst  say  : 

2.  "Why  did  the  heathen  rage. 

And  the  people  imagine  vain  things, 

The  kings  of  the  earth  stand  up. 

And  the  rulers  combine  together 

Against  the  Lord  and  against  his  anointed?" 

3.  For  of  a  truth  there  have  combined 

Against  thine  holy  child  Jesus,  wliom  thou  hast  anpinted, 

Both  Herod  and  Pontius  Pilate, 

With  the  heathen  and  the  peoples  of  Israel, 

To  do  whatsoever  things  thy  hand 

And  thy  counsel  predetermined  to  be  done. 

4.  And  now,  Lord,  look  down  upon  their  threatenings, 
And  give  unto  thy  servants 

With  all  boldness  to  speak  thy  word  : 
While  thou  art  stretching  forth  thine  hand  for  healing, 
And  while  signs  and  wonders  are  performed 
Through  the  name  of  thine  holy  child  Jesus. 

The  manner  in  which  this  prayer  was  uttered — the 
whole  people  "  lifting  up    their  voices   to   God  with 
*  Jebb's  Sacred  Literature,  p.  I3::-I42. 


ANTIQUITY  OF  FORMS    OF  PRAYER.  1 29 

one  accord "  —  together  with  the  regular  poetical 
measure  in  which  it  is  written,  prove,  we  think,  that 
it  must  have  been  a  pre-composed  form,  with  which 
all  were  familiar.  To  use  again  the  words  of  Bishop 
Jebb — "The  same  sacred  vein  of  poetry  animates 
the  whole ;  and  yet,  amidst  all  this  poetic  fervor,  we 
may  discern  much  technical  nicety  of  construction." 
The  view,  therefore,  taken  of  it  by  Mr.  Chapin,  is 
one  which  would  commend  itself  to  the  reason  of  any 
person  not  biased  by  prejudice.  "The  occasion 
upon  which  the  use  of  tliis  prayer  is  recorded,  was 
the  extraordinary  escape  of  Peter  and  John  from  the 
hands  of  the  Jews.  And  yet  there  is  no  allusion  to 
the  circumstance.  It  is  just  such  a  prayer  as  they 
would  be  likely  to  use  on  every  occasion  of  meeting 
together — one  that  would  be  applicable  to  their  case 
at  all  times.  Hence,  as  this  general  prayer  was  used 
upon  an  especial  occasion,  it  is  but  reasonable  to  infer 
that  it  had  been  pre-composed,  and  formed  a  part  of 
their  daily  worship."* 

Occasionally,  in  tlip  Epistles,  we  find  an  incidental 
allusion  to  their  service,  which  strengthens  the  view 
we  have  given.  Thus,  the  Colossians  are  directed 
"  to  teach  and  admonish  one  another  in  psalm.s,  and 
hymns,  and  spiritual  songs."  These,  of  course,  must 
have  been  previously  prepared.  And  to  what,  unless 
one  of  these — probably  an  Easter  Hymn — could  the 
Apostle  refer  in  his  Epistle  to  the  Ephesians  (v.  14), 
when  he  writes— "  Awake  thou  that  slcepest,  and 
arise  from  tlie  dead,  and  Christ  shall  give  thee  light  ?" 
Where  is  this  said  in  Scripture  ?  The  words  are 
nowhere   else    to   be    found.      Since   therefore   Aio 

•  Prim.  Church,  p.  130. 

9 


130  ANTIQUITY  OP  FORMS    OF   PRAYER. 

'XeyEi,  rendered  in  our  version  "he  saith,"  might  as 
well  be  translated  "  it  saith,"  we  may  believe  this  to 
be  a  quotation  from  some  now  forgotten  anthem  of 
the  Early  Church.  Such  is  the  view  of  Bishop  Jebb,* 
and  the  lines  certainly  form  a  triplet  of  constructive 
parallelisms — 

syEipai  6  HaQsvSoov, 

xai  avadra  eh  toov  vexpoov, 

uai  ETticpavdei  6oi  6  Xpidroi. 

Awake,  thou  who  sleepest, 

And  arise  from  the  dead. 

And  Christ  will  shine  upon  thee. 

St.  Paul,  also,  in  writing  to  the  Corinthians,  mentions 
the  custom  of  saying  Amen,  at  the  close  of  the 
prayer,  (i  Cor.  xiv.  i6.)  This,  Justin  Martyr,  in  the 
middle  of  the  second  century,  says,  was  the  universal 
practice  of  the  Church. t 

We  now  turn  to  the  Primitive  Church  in  the  age 
immediately  following  that  of  the  Apostles.  The 
form  most  frequently  used  was  the  Lord's  Prayer, 
endeared  to  them  by  so  many  associations  connect- 
ing it  witi]  Him  from  whose  lips  they  first  learned  its 
holy  words.  Tertullian  calls  it  "  not  only  a  rule  pre- 
scribing the  method  and  matter  of  prayer,  but  a  form 
to  be  used  in  the  words  in  which  Christ  delivered  it, 
and  to  be  added  to  all  other  prayers,  as  the  founda- 

*  "Wolfius,  Cur.  Philol.  ;  and  RosenmuUer,  cite  Henmann  (Poe- 
ciles,  torn.  ii.  p.  390),  as  conjecturing  these  three  lines  to  have  been 
borrowed  from  one  of  those  '  hymns,  or  spiritual  songs,'  which,  even 
in  the  Apostles'  days,  were  used  in  the  Christian  Church,  and  which 
are  immediately  noticed  by  St.  Paul,  in  the  same  chapter  of  the  same 
Epistle,  verse  19.  The  conjecture  has  been  approved  and  adopted  by 
Professors  Stow  and  Michaelis,  nor  is  it  opposed  by  RosenmuUer." 

yebb''s  Sacred  Literature,  p.  150. 

t  Apol.  i.  c.  87. 


ANTIQUITY    OF    FORMS    OF   PRAYER.  I31 

don  of  a  superstructure.'"'^  St,  Chrysostom,  in  two 
volumes  of  his  works — the  third  and  the  fifth — makes 
the  declaration  more  than  twenty  times,  "  that  the 
Lord's  Prayer  was  a  common  form  in  use  among 
them,  by  the  express  command  of  Christ"  And  St. 
Augustine,  in  his  Retractations,  confirms  this,  asserting 
that  "  the  whole  Church  will  continue  to  use  it  to  the 
end  of  the  world. "f 

"  Evident  is  it,  beyond  dispute,"  says  the  learned 
Bingham,  "that  the  whole  Primitive  Church  con- 
stantly used  it  in  all  her  holy  offices,  out  of  con- 
sciousness and  regard  to  Christ's  command 

For  there  was  no  considerable  Divine  office,  in  the 
celebration  of  which  this  prayer  did  not  always  make 
a  solemn  part.  "J  This  was  the  case  in  Baptism,  when 
each  person  was  enjoined  to  repeat  it  as  soon  as  the 
rite  was  administered.  "Immediately  after  this" — 
say  the  Apostolical  Constitutions — "let  him  stand 
and  pray  the  prayer  which  the  Lord  hath  taught  us."§ 
And  St.  Chrysostom  in  like  manner  informs  us,  that 
as  soon  as  he  leaves  the  water,  "  he  says  these  words, 
'  Our  Father  which  art  in  Heaven,'  "  &c.||  This  was 
done  in  the  same  manner  at  the  celebration  of  the 
Eucharist.  St.  Cyril  says  —  "  After  the  oblation 
prayer,  we  say  that  prayer  which  our  Saviour  de- 
livered to  His  disciples,  calling  God  our  Father  with 
a  pure  conscience,  and  saying,  *  Our  Father,  which 
art  in  Heaven.'  "1  And  St.  Augustine  informs  us — 
"  The  whole  Church  concludes  the  prayer  of  bene- 
diction and  sanctification  with  the  Lord's   Prayer."** 

*  De  Orat.  cap.  9.  \  Lib.  i.  cap.  19. 

X  Orig.  Eccles.  lib.  xiii.  chap.  7,  sect.  2.     §  Lib.  vi.  cap.  44. 
II  Horn.  6,  in  Coloss.  T  Catech.  Myst.  v.  p.  298. 

**  Epist.  59,  ad.  Paulin.  ' 


132  ANTIQUITY    OF   FORMS   OF  PRAYER. 

It  also  made  a  part  of  their  daily  Morning  and 
Evening  Prayers,  distinct  from  the  Communion 
office,*  as  well  as  of  the  private  devotions  of  indi- 
viduals. Thus  St,  Chrysostom  says — "  Christ,  to 
induce  us  to  unanimity  and  charity,  enjoins  us  to 
make  common  prayer,  and  obliges  the  whole  Church, 
as  if  it  were  but  one  person,  to  say,  'Our  Father,' 
and  '  Give  us  this  day  our  daily  bread,'  &c.,  always 
using  a  word  of  the  plural  number,  and  commanding 
every  one,  whether  he  pray  alone  by  himself,  or  in 
company  with  others,  still  to  make  prayer  for  his 
brethren."f  Therefore  it  had  the  name  of  Oratio 
Quotidiana,  the  Christian's  Daily  Prayer,  and  was 
used  alike  hy  heretics  and  schismatics,  as  by  the 
Catholics.:!: 

We  have  so  particularly  brouglit  forward  the  use 
of  this  prayer  in  tlic  early  ages,  not  only  as  showing 
the  attachment  of  Christians  to  It  as  a  form,  but  also 
because  it  will  be  evident,  from  an  examination  of 
the  passages  quoted,  that  it  often  thus  formed  one 
portion  of  a  precomposcd  service.  There  were  in- 
deed certain  forms  which  were  in  all  Churches  sub- 
stantially the  same,  and  were  used  in  connection 
with  the  ordinary  Liturgy.  These  were,  the  form 
for  Baptism,^  that  for  the  consecration  of  the  Eu- 
charist,||  and  the  Doxologies.T  This  Bingham  has 
most  fully  shown.  And  the  reason  for  uniformity  in 
these  particular  services  is  evident.  They  included 
the  grand  cardinal  points  of  our  faith,  and  therefore, 

*  3  Bing.  Orig.  Eccles.  lib.  xiii.  ch.  7,  sect.  4. 

f  Com.  ill  Ps.  cxii.  J  Orig.  Eccles.  lib.  xiii.  ch.  7,  sect.  7. 

§  Ibid.  lib.  xi.  ch.  3,  and  ch.  7.     See  also  Chapui's  Prim.  Church, 
p.  127. 
.11  Ibid.  lib.  XV.  ch.  3.  ^  Ibid.  lib.  xiv.  ch.  2. 


ANTIQUITY    OF    FORMS    OF    PRAYER.         1 33 

while  they  agreed,  there  was — to  use  Binghams's  own 
words — "  but  one  form  of  worship  throughout  the 
whole  Church,  as  to  what  concerned  the  substance 
of  Christian  worship." 

With  respect  to  the  other  parts  of  the  Liturgy — 
the  ordinary  prayers — it  is  evident  that  each  Bishop 
was  at  liberty  to  form  his  own  in  what  method  and 
words    he     thought     proper,    only     keeping   to    the 
analogy  of  faith  and  sound  doctrine.     Thus,  we  are 
told  that  St.  Basil,  among  other  good  services  which 
he  did  for  the  Church  at  Caesarea,  while  he  was  but 
a  Presbyter  in  it,  composed  forms  of  prayer,  which, 
by  the  consent  and  authority  of  the  Bishop,  Eusebius, 
were  regularly  used  there.     And  this  is  thought  by 
many  to  be  the  first  draught  of  that  Liturgy  which 
bears  his  name  to  this  day.     The  Church  of  Neo- 
Caesarea,  in  Pontus,  where  St.  Basil  was  born,  had  a 
Liturgy  peculiar  to  itself,  of  which  he  speaks  in  one 
of.  his  Epistles.     St.  Chrysostom's  Liturgy,  which  he 
composed  for  the  Church  of  Constantinople,  differed 
from  these.     The  Ambrosian,    Roman,  and   African 
forms,  all  varied  in  some   particulars."^^     When  also 
any    new  Church  was  founded,  it  did  not  feel  itself 
obliged   to  follow,  except   in    spirit,  the  model    and 
words  of  the  Church  from  which  it  came,  but   altered 
the  old  Liturgy  to  suit  its  own  peculiar  circumstances 
and  condition,  in  the  same  way  that  we  adapted  the 
Liturgy  of  the  Church  in  England  to  our  situation 
in   this    country.     Of    this,    the    historian    Sozomcn 
gives  an  example  in  the  instance  of  Maiuma,  in  Pales- 
tine, which  once  belonged  to  the  diocese   of  Gaza. 
For,  as  soon  as  it  was  erected  into  a  distinct  Episco- 

*  Orig.  Eccles.  lib.  iii.  ch.  6. 


134  ANTIQUITY   OF  FORMS    OF   PRAYER. 

pal  See,  it  was  no  longer  obliged  to  observe  precisely 
the  rules  and  forms  of  the  Church  of  Gaza,  but 
had,  as  he  particularly  remarks,  a  calendar  for  the 
festivals  of  its  own  martyrs,  and  commemorations  of 
the  Bishops  and  Presbyters  who  had  lived  among 
them/'^ 

After,  however,  a  Liturgy  was  adopted  in  each 
Church,  and  so  modelled  in  minor  points  as  to  meet 
its  peculiar  wants,  \vc  have  reason  to  believe  that  it 
remained  with  but  little  alteration.  Mr.  Palmer  says 
— "  That  each  Church  preserved  continually  the  same 
Liturgy  is  certain.  It  is  impossible  to  peruse  the 
notices  supplied  by  the  Fathers,  without  perceiving 
that  the  baptized  Christians  were  supposed  to  be 
familiar  with  every  part  of  the  service  ;  and  continual 
allusions  are  made  to  various  particulars  as  well 
known,  which  it  would  be  impossible  to  explain,  ex- 
cept by  referring  to  the  Liturgies  still  extant  The 
order  of  the  parts  was  always  preserved,  the  same 
rites  and  ceremonies  continually  repeated,  the  same 
ideas  and  language,  without  material  variation,  trans- 
mitted from  generation  to  generation.  The  people 
always  knew  the  precise  points  at  which  they  were 
to  repeat  their  responses,  chant  their  sacred  hymn,  or 
join  in  the  well  known  prayer,  "f  We  can  give  an 
example  of  this  by  a  comparison  of  the  works  of 
Justin  Martyr  and  Cyril  of  Jerusalem.  The  former 
in  the  middle  of  the  second  century  gives  an  account 
of  the  order  of  worship  in  the  Syrian  Churches  in  his 
day.:{:  The  latter,  150  years  later,  describes  the 
solemn  Liturgy  which  was  celebrated  after  the  dis- 

*  Ibid.  lib.  xiii.  ch.  5. 

t  Antiq.  of  English  Ritual,  v,  i.  p.  9.  %  Apol.  i.  p.  96. 


ANTIQUITY  OF  FORMS  OF  PRAYER.  135 

missal  of  the  Catechumens.'^"  These  two  writers  Hved 
in  different  parts  of  the  Patriarchate  of  Antioch,  but 
it  is  evident  they  are  referring  to  a  Liturgy  essentiaUy 
the  same,  and  which,  during  the  interval  of  time 
which  separated  them,  had  not  substantially  changed. 
It  is  that  which  we  now  have  under  the  name  of  the 
Liturgy  of  St.  James. 

From  the  prevalence  of  this  spirit  of  hostility  to 
change,  we  should  naturally  expect  that,  after  the 
lapse  of  some  centuries,  a  substantial  uniformity 
would  be  found  in  the  ritual  of  the  different  Churches. 
And  such  is  the  case.  All  the  Primitive  Liturgies 
may  plainly  be  reduced  to  four,  which  were  undoubt- 
edly the  original  forms  from  which  they  were 
modelled.  These  are,  first,  the  Oriental  Liturgy, 
which  prevailed  through  the  entire  East,  and  was 
ascribed  by  tradition  to  St.  James.  Second,  the 
Liturgy  of  St.  Peter,  which  was  used  through  Italy, 
Sicily,  and  the  North  of  Africa.  Third,  St.  Mark's 
Liturgy,  adopted  by  the  Christians  throughout  Egypt, 
Ethiopia,  and  the  neighboring  countries  on  the 
Mediterranean  Sea.  And  fourth,  St.  John's  Liturgy, 
which  prevailed  through  Gaul,  Spain,  and  the  exar- 
chate of  Ephesus,  until  the  fifth  century.  Now  upon 
examining  these,  we  find  that  the  pri-ncipal  ideas  are 
the  same.  The  principal  rites  are  identical,  and  there 
is  a  general  uniformity  of  arrangement  among  them 
all.  These  facts  prove,  therefore,  that  at  a  distant 
antiquity  they  must  have  had  a  common  origin,  or 
been  at  least  written  by  men  who  shared  in  the  same 
feeUngs ;  while  there  is  also  sufficient  diversity  to 
show  tlie  remoteness  of  the  period  at  which  they  had 
*  Cyr.  Op.  296. 


136  ANTIQUITY  OF  FORMS   OF  PRA  YER. 

their  rise.*     Their  use  was  indeed  so    extensive  in 
those  ages,  when  Bishops   were    most   independent, 

*  We  here  give  the  arrangement.  The  striking  resemblance  to  our 
Communion  Service  will  be  at  once  perceived  : — ■ 

St.  Peter's  Liturgy.  St.  James'  Litu.igy. 

Italy,  Sicily,  and  Africa.  Oriental. 

1.  Lift  up  your  hearts,  &c.  10.  The  kiss  of  peace. 

2.  riierefore  with  Angels,  &c.         i.  Lift  up  your  hearts,  &c. 

3.  Prayer  for  the  Church  militant.  2.  Therefore  with  Angels,  &c. 

4.  Consecration  Prayer.  5.  Commemoration  of  our  Lord's 

5.  Commemoration  of  our  Lord's  words. 

words.  6.  The  Oblation. 

6.  The  Oblation.  4.  Consecration  Prayer. 

7.  Prayers  for  the  dead.  3.  Prayer  for  the  Church  militant. 

8.  Breaking  of  Bread.  7.   Prayers  for  the  dead. 

9.  The  Lord's  Prayer.  9.  The  Lord's  Prayer. 
ID.  The  kiss  of  peace.  8.  Breaking  of  bread. 
II.  Communion.  II.  Communion. 

St.  Mark's  Liturgy.  St.  John's  Liturgy. 

Egypt  and  Ethiopia.  Gaul,  Spain,  and  Ephesus. 

10.  Tlie  kiss  of  peace.  3.  Prayer  for  the  Church  militant. 

1.  Lifl  up  your  hearts,  &c.  7.   Prayers  for  the  dead. 

3.  Prayer  for  the  Church  militant.  10.  The  kiss  of  peace. 

7.  Prayers  for  the  dead.  I.  Lift  up  your  hearts,  &c. 

2.  Therefore  with  Angels,  &c.         2.  Therefore  with  Angels,  &c. 

5.  Commemoration  of  our  Lord's  5.  Commemoration  of  our  Lord's 

words.  words. 

6.  The  Oblation.  6.  The  Oblation. 

4.  Consecration  Prayer.  4.  Consecration  Prayer. 

8.  Breaking  of  bread.  8.  Breaking  of  bread. 

9.  The  Lord's  Prayer.  9.  The  Lord's  Prayer. 

11.  Communion.  11.   Communion. 
The  order  in  our  Church  is  somewhat  different  : — 

3.  Prayer  for  the  Church  militant.  8.  Breaking  of  bread. 

1.  Lift  up  your  hearts,  &c.  6.  The  Oblation. 

2.  Therefore  with  Angels,  &c.  4.  Consecration  Prayer. 
5.  Commemoration  of  our  Lord's  il.  Communion. 

viords.  9-  The  Lord's  Prayer. 

For  the  benefit  of  those  who  are  not  familiar  with  this  subject,  we 
would  remark,  that  the  Prayers  for  the  Dead'm.  the  Primitive  Liturgies 
bear  no  resemblance  whatever  to  those  now  used  in  the  Romish  Church. 


AN7VQUITV  OF  FORMS  OF  PRAYER.  137 

that  it  is  difficult  to  assign  their  origin  to  a  lower 
period  than  the  Apostolic  age.  "  The  liberty,"  says 
Mr.  Palmer,  "  which  every  Christian  Church  plainly 
had  and  exercised,  in  the  way  of  improving  its  formu- 
laries, confirms  the  antiquity  of  the  four  great 
Liturgies ;  for  where  this  liberty  existed,  it  could 
have  been  scarcely  anything  else  but  reverence  for 
the  Apostolical  source  from  which  the  original 
Liturgies  were  derived,  that  prevented  an  infinite 
variety  of  formularies,  and  preserved  the  substantial 
uniformity  which  we  find  to  have  prevailed  in  vast 
districts  of  the  Primitive  Church."*  They  form, 
therefore,  four  distinct  channels,  by  which  the  faith 
and  practice  of  the  early  Church  have  been  handed 
down  to  us. 

To  one  of  these,  indeed — the  Liturgy  of  St.  James 
— we  can  assign  a  very  great  antiquity,  from  the 
manner  in  which  it  has  been  kept  separate  from  all 
others.  Nearly  fourteen  centuries  ago,  at  the  Coun- 
ciU  of  Chalcedon,  which  met  A.  D.  451,  a  sect  of 
Christians,  called  Monophysites,  were  anathematized 
for  heresy.  Since  that  time  they  have  been  of  course 
entirely  separated  from  the  orthodox,  and  no  com- 

They  were  rather  an  affectionate  remembrance  of  those  who  had  slept 
in  the  f.iith — "a  commemoration  of  the  departed  faithful,"  as  Mr. 
Palmer  calls  them, — and  were  in  these  words  : — "  We  commend  unto 
Thy  mercy,  O  Lord,  all  other  Thy  servants  which  are  departed  hence 
from  us  with  the  sign  of  faith,  and  now  do  rest  in  the  sleep  of  peace; 
grant  unto  them,  we  beseech  Thee,  Thy  mercy  and  everlasting  peace, 
and  that,  at  the  day  of  the  general  resurrection,  we,  and  all  they 
which  be  of  the  mystical  body  of  thy  Son,  may  altogether  be  set  at 
His  right  hand,  and  hear  that  His  most  joyful  voice,  '  Come  unto  me, 
O  ye  that  be  blessed  of  my  Father,  and  possess  the  kingdom  which  is 
prepared  for  you  from  the  beginning  of  the  world  !'  Grant  this,  O 
Father,  for  Jesus  Christ's  sake,  our  only  Mediator  and  Advocate." 
*  Antiq.  of  English  Ritual,  v.  i.  p.  8. 


138  ANTIQUITY    OF  FORMS  OF  PRAYER. 

munion  subsisted  between  the  two  parties.  For  a 
time,  they  each  had  their  estabhshments  in  the 
different  dioceses,  and  their  own  patriarch  in  the 
MetropoHtan  City.  At  the  time  of  the  Mahometan 
Invasion,  the  orthodox  were  driven  out,  and  the 
Monophysites,  patronized  by  the  invaders,  remained 
in  undisturbed  possession  of  their  sees,  and  repre- 
sented the  ancient  Patriarchate  of  Antioch.  At  this 
day,  the  members  of  this  sect  are  still  scattered 
through  Judea,  INIesopotamia,  Syria,  and  the  south- 
ern part  of  Asia  Minor,  and  use  a  Liturgy  in  the 
Syriac  Language,  which  they  ascribe  to  St.  James. 
The  singular  fact  about  this  Liturgy  is,  that  a  great 
part  of  it  coincides,  expression  for  expression,  with 
the  Greek  Liturgy  used  by  the  Orthodox  Church  at 
Jerusalem  ;  so  that  one  must  evidently  be  a  trans- 
lation of  the  other.*  When,  then,  was  this  done? 
It  must  have  been  prior  to  the  Council  of  Chalcedon, 
for  since  that  time  these  two  parties  have  shunned 
each  other.  This  coincidence,  therefore,  between 
their  most  solemn  religious  rites  proves  their 
services  to  be  at  least  more  than  1400  years  old. 
Such,  then,  is  the  authority  we  have  for  this  practice 
— from  the  custom  of  the  Jewish  Church — the  sanc- 
tion and  example  of  our  Lord — and  its  universal 
prevalence  in  the  early  Church.  "  No  doubt  " — says 
Hooker — "  from  God  it  hath  proceeded,  and  by  us 
it  must  be  acknowledged  as  a  work  of  singular  care 
and  providence,  that  the  Church  JiatJi.  evermore  held 
a  prescript  form  of  prayer,  although  not  in  all  things 
everywhere  the  same,  yet  for  the  most  part  retain- 
ing still  the  same  analogy.  So  that  if  the  Liturgies 
*  The  Antiquity  of  the  Existing  Liturgies,  Oxford,  1838. 


ANTIQUITY    OF    FORMS    OF  PRAYER.  1 39 

of  all  the  ancient  Churches  throughout  the  world  be 
compared  among  themsslvcs,  it  may  be  easily  per- 
ceived they  had  all  one  original  mould,  and  that  the 
public  prayers  of  the  people  of  God  in  Churches 
thoroughly  sef"tled,  did  never  use  to  be  voluntary  die- 
tat  es  proceeding  from  any  man  'i-  extemporal  zvit. " '"  It 
would  not  indeed  be  possible,  during  the  whole 
course  of  the  1500  years  which  preceded  the 
Reformation,  to  find  any  Church,  the  public  worship 
of  which  was  conducted  without  a  prescribed  form. 
Not  only  the  ancient  Greek  and  Latin  Churches,  but 
all  the  other  Christian  Societies  in  Europe,  Asia,  and 
Africa,  conformed  to  this  rule.  The  Abyssinians  and 
Egyptians — the  Jacobites,  Maronites,  and  Nestorians 
of  Asia — and  the  Christians  of  St.  Thomas,  in  India  f 
— all  had  their  Liturgies. 

Strictly  considered,  all  public  prayer  is  a  form  to 
those  who  unite  with  the  speaker.  Whether  his 
petitions   have    been   previously  composed,  or  arise 

*  Eccles.  Polity,  lib.  v.  sect.  25. 

t  Dr.  Buchanan,  speaking  about  these  Indian  Christians,  says — 
"  They  have  the  Bible  and  a  Scriptural  Liturgy  ;  and  these  will  save 
a  Church  in  the  worst  of  times.  And  as  there  were  but  few  copies  of 
the  Bible  among  the  Syrians  (for  every  copy  was  transcribed  with  the 
pen),  it  is  highly  probable,  that  if  they  had  not  enjoyed  the  advantage 
of  the  daily  prayers,  and  daily  portions  of  Scripture,  in  their  Liturgy, 
there  would  have  been,  in  the  revolut'on  of  ages,  no  vestige  of  Chris- 
tianity left  among  them In   a  nation  like  ours,  overflowing 

with  knowledge,  men  are  not  always  in  circumstances  to  perceive  the 
value  of  a  Sci-iptural  Liturgy.  When  Christians  are  well  taught,  they 
think  they  want  something  better.  But  the  young  and  the  ignorant, 
who  form  a  great  proportion  of  the  community,  are  edified  by  a  little 
plain  instruction,  frequently  repeated.  A  small  Church  or  sect  may 
do  without  a  form  for  a  while.  But  a  national  Liturgy  is  that  which 
preserves  a  relic  of  the  true  faith  among  the  people  in  a  large  empire, 
when  the  priests  leave  their  Articles,  and  their  Confessions  of  Faith." 
Researches  in  Asia,  p.  80. 


I40  ANTIQUITY  OF  FORMS    OF  PRAYER. 

from  the  impulse  of  the  moment,  it  is  the  same  to 
his  hearers.  His  extemporaneous  prayer  must  be  to 
them  a  form  of  prayer.  We  come  then  to  the 
simple  question — whether  it  is  better  to  have  this 
arranged  beforehand,  or  to  trust  to  the  passing  feel- 
ings of  him  who  happens  to  be  the  minister  ?  As 
far  as  the  spiritual  benefit  of  the  hearers  is  concerned, 
we  should  say  that  the  former  would  be  the  wiser 
course.  Otherwise,  the  effect  produced  will  be  that 
so  admirably  described  by  an  eminent  prelate  of  the 
Church  of  England — "  If  there  should  be  nothing 
absurd  or  unbecoming  in  the  prayers,  yet  the  audience 
must  first  endeavor  to  understand  the  words ;  and 
then  they  must  weigh  and  consider  the  sense  and 
meaning;  and  then  they  must  deliberate  whether 
such  requests  are  proper  for  persons  in  their  condi- 
tion, before  they  can  lawfully  join  them  ;  and  by  that 
time,  the  minister  is  passed  on  to  some  other  subject 
which  requires  the  like  attention  and  consideration  ; 
and  so  their  aii'iosity  may  be  raised,  and  they  may 
exercise  iheiv  Judgment,  but  there  can  scarce  be  any 
room  left  for  devolion."'" 

Equally  important  is  the  influence  of  a  Liturgy  upon 
a  Church  collectively.  It  preserves  its  orthodoxy 
unimpaired.  Without  a  prescribed  form  of  prayer, 
each  individual  teacher  is  left  to  inculcate  such 
doctrines  as  best  suit  his  own  private  views.  He 
may  preach  error,  and  then  pray  in  accordance  with 
it.  There  is  no  standard  to  which  his  people  can  at 
all  times  direct  their  attention,  and  judge  of  his  doc- 
trines. He  may  become  a  disbeliever  in  one  of  the 
cardinal  articles  of  the  Christian  faith,  but  if  he  omit 

•  Bishop  Newton's  Sermons,  vol.  ii. 


ANTIQUITY  OF  FORMS   OF  PRAYER.  14 1 

all  mention  of  it,  both  in  his  sermons  and  prayers,  it 
may  not  be  brought  before  the  attention  of  his  people 
for  years,  and  thus  insensibly,  yet  gradually,  they 
fall  into  his  errors. 

Such,  however,  can  never  be  the  case  where  there 
is  a  Liturgy  like  that  of  our  Church.  Let  one  who 
ministers  at  our  altars  become  heretical,  and  he  can- 
not lead  his  people  with  him.  He  may  for  a  time 
preach  his  views,  but  each  prayer  he  reads  in  the 
service  will  contradict  him,  and  proclaim  most  une- 
quivocally that  he  is  faithless  to  the  Church.  Thus 
he  will  be  placed  in  a  false  position,  until  at  last  he  is 
compelled  to  go  out  from  us,  showing  that  he  is  not 
of  us. 

Now  see  how  this  has  always  been  exemplified. 
What  religious  society  without  a  Liturgy  has  ever 
subsisted  for  any  length  of  time,  and  yet  not  wan- 
dered from  its  early  faith?  Look  at  those  on  the 
continent  of  Europe,  which,  after  the  Reformation, 
while  they  abandoned  the  Apostolical  ministry,  give 
up  the  ancient  Liturgy  also.  To  what  result  have 
those  in  Germany  been  led  ?  Why,  we  see  them 
wandering  in  all  the  mazes  of  rationalism,  each  year 
tending  downward  to  a  darker,  more  hopeless  infi- 
delity.*     What  is  the  faith  which  now  prevails  at 

*  Henry  Dvviglit  thus  describes  their  prog;ress — "The  genuineness 
and  authenticity  of  the  Old  Testament  was  first  attacked,  and  outwork 
after  outwork  was  gained,  until  all  belief  in  it  as  a  revelation,  was 
almost  literally  exploded  from  Germany.  The  Epistles  of  the  New 
Testament  were  afterwards  assailed  with  the  same  weapons.  The 
inspiration  of  one  writer  after  anothef  ceased  to  be  believed,  until  by 
an  almost  equally  large  proportion  of  the  theologians,  they  were  also 
viewed  as  unworthy  of  regard,  except  so  far  as  they  contain  a  beauti- 
ful system  of  morality,  and  so  far  as  they  are  historically  interesting 
from  their  instrumentality  in  spreadmg  Christianity.     At  a  subsequent 


142  ANTIQUITY  OF  FORMS   OF  PRAYER. 

Geneva,  where  once  John  Calvin  inculcated  his  stern 
and  rigid  creed  ?  There,  all  is  changed,  and  in  place 
of  the  strictness  of  his  views,  we  have  the  latitude  and 
coldness  of  those  who  scoff  at  the  Divinity  of  our 
Lord.*  We  are  compelled  then  to  regard  the  refor- 
mation on  the  continent,  as  a  thing  that  has  passed 
away.  "  Lutheranism  and  Calvinism  are  indeed  now 
little  more  than  matters  of  history  ;  for  the  feeble 
and  lifeless  relics  which  they  have  left  behind,  and 
which  still  bear  their  name,  are  but  painful  memorials 
of  systems  whose  imperfections  and  faults,  whatever 
they  might  be,  were  dignified  by  a  holy  ardor  and 
zeal  for  God  and  for  God's  revelation.  Now,  when 
the  confessions  of  faith  for  which  Luther,  and  Zuin- 
glius,  and  Calvin  would  have  laid  down  their  lives, 
are  thrown  aside  as  obsolete,  or  subscribed  with 
salvos  and  declarations  which  render  the  act  of 
subscription  a  mere  mockery  ;  how  can  we  recognize 

period,  the  Gospels  were  attacked  in  a  similar  manner.  The  charac- 
ter of  Christ  was  soon  generally  believed,  by  the  clergy,  to  have  no 
more  claim  to  our  respect  than  those  of  Plato  and  Aristotle,  unless 
from  the  greater  purity  of  his  example  and  his  code  of  morals,  and 
from  his  exhibition  of  powers  of  intellect,  which  most  of  them  would 
have  probably  admitted  to  be  much  superior  to  those  of  the  Greek 

philosophers So  universal  was  this  disbelief,  that  there  were 

not,  in  the  year  1808,  as  one  of  the  most  distinguished  orthodox  pro- 
fessors mformed  me,  five  clergymen,  who  dared  to  come  forth  and 
declare  themselves  to  the  world,  as  belonging  to  the  orthodox  party." 
Travels  in  Germany  in  1825-6.  See,  too,  Hugh  yames  Rose's  'State 
of  Protestantism  in  Germany,' 

*  Dr.  Sprague  of  Albany  says—"  The  Protestant  Church  of  Geneva 
has  greatly  departed  from  the  faith  of  the  early  reformers.  Most  of 
their  present  ministers  are  unquestionably  Unitarians  of  the  German 
School,  though  it  is  believed  there  are  a  few  whose  religious  views  are, 
in  the  main,  evangelical.  Here,  as  in  most  places  in  France,  I  under- 
stand there  is  very  little  that  charity  herself  can  believe  to  be  vital 
piety." — Letters  from  Europe  in  1828, 


ANTIQUITY   OF    FORMS    OF    PRAYER.         143 

the  existence  of  their  faith  ?'^  Overrun  by  the 
audacious  impiety  of  Neologism,  an  infidelity  whicli 
cloaks  itself  under  the  name  of  Christianity  in  ordcr 
to  inflict  a  more  grievous  wound  on  faith,  or  sunk 
into  the  deadly  slumbers  of  Socinian  and  Arian 
apostacy,  Lutheranism  and  Calvinism,  as  religious 
systems,  seem  to  have  nearly  perished  in  the  coun- 
tries where  they  arose,  "f 

So  it  is,  too,  among  the  dissenters  in  England,  and 
the  same  pulpits  in  which,  during  the  last  century, 
their  ablest  divines  preached,  are  now  held  by  So- 
cinians.:};     And  is  not  this  the  case  in  our  own  land, 

*  One  of  our  own  clergy  has  thus  recorded  the  result  of  his  obser- 
vations, during  a  visit  to  Geneva,  in  1819  :^ 

"  And  thrives  pure  faith  there  now  with  roots  wide  ^read  ? 

Is  Calvin's  name  revered — it's  master  dead? 
I  too  an  exile,  but  for  health,  around 

That  Lake,  whose  mirror  yields  tlie  raptured  eye 
Scenes  of  transcendent  grace  and  majesty, 
Have  strolled,  and  in  Geneva's  streets  have  trod. 

'  Where's  Calvin's  tomb?'  I  asked  ; — the  sole  reply, 
'  Who  knows  ?' — '  Is  Christ  still  worshipped  here  as  God  ?' 
'In  private  by  dull  fools,  who  yet  in  darkness  plod.'  " 
f  Palmer's  Treatise  on  the  Church,  v.  i.  p.  358. 
X  The  most  fearful  picture  we  have  seen  of  the  English  Dissenters 
is  given  by  two  of  their  own  authors,  Bogue  and  Bennet.     They  say — 
"  Many,  who  drank  the  cup  of  Arianism  first,  and  then   of  Socinian- 
ism  to  the  very  dregs,  ceased  to  be  members  of  the  dissenting  congre- 
gation ....   By  the  operation  of  these  causes,  many  a  Presbyterian 
congregation  dwindled  from  a  giant  into  a  dwarf.     Aged  people  who 
remember  their  respectable  condition  in  the  metropolis,  at  the  com- 
mencement of  this  period,  must  be  convinced   that   heresy    has  acted 
like  an  enchantress,  in  silently,  by  her  fatal  spells,  accomplishing  their 
destruction.     They  are,  in  general,  now  but  the  shadow  of  what  they 
formerly  were,  and  many  of  them  have  ceased  to  exist.     Devonshire, 
the  cradle  of  Arianism,  has  been  the  grave   of  the   Arian  dissenters, 
and  there  is  not  left  in  that  populous  county,  a  twentieth  part  of  the 
Presbyterians  which  were  to  be  found  at  Tier  birth.     More  tlian  twenty 
of  their  meeting-houses,  it  is  said,  have   been  shut  up,  and  in  those 


144  ANTIQUITY   OF  FORMS    OF  PRAYER. 

where  even  the  descendants  of  the  New  England 
puritans  have  abandoned  their  faith,  and  substituted 
in  its  place  the  most  fearful  heresies,  "denying  the 
Lord  that  bought  them  !"  There  is  reason,  therefore, 
for  that  exclamation,  uttered  by  Buchanan,  the  apostle 
of  the  East — "  Woe  to  the  declining  Church  which 
hath  not  a  Gospel  Liturgy  I'"'* 

But  where  could  this  melancholy  history  be  written 
of  any  who  adhered  faithfully  to  a  prescribed  form  in 
their  public  devotions  ?  Take  our  own  Church,  for 
example.  Investigate  the  doctrines  which  are  em- 
bodied in  her  formularies,  and  you  will  find  that  they 
are  now  what  they  were  eighteen  centuries  ago. 
Faithless  and  unworthy  men  have  indeed  at  times 
been  the  teachers  of  the  Church,  but  their  errors 
passed  away  with  them,  and  the  great  body  of  her 
members,  by  looking  to  the  Liturgy  for  instruction, 
still  held  to  their  steadfastness.  Its  holy  language, 
bearing  the  impress,  and  breathing  forth  the  spirit  of 
the  purest  days,  is  stamped  upon  the  memory  of  each 
one  of  her  true  children,  and  wrought  into  the  very 
texture  of  his  mind.  Her  beautiful  services,  adapted 
to  every  change  and  circumstance  of  life,  from  the 

which  remain  open,  there  are  to  be  seen  the  skeletons  only  of  congre- 
gations which  were  full  and  flourishing  before  error  had  banished 
prosperity." 

"  Like  the  devouring  pestilence,  Arianism  and  Socinianism  have, 
with  fe>v  exceptions,  carried  desolation  with  them  into  every  congre- 
gation where  they  have  obtained  an  entrance;  and  some  scores  more 
of  their  meeting-houses  would  have  been  shut  up,  but  for  the  pious 
benevolence  of  persons  of  a  different  creed,  in  the  former  generation. 
By  tlieir  endowments,  mnny  of  the  Presbyterian  ministers  have  been 
enabled  to  retain  their  office,  and  to  preach  to  what  deserves  not  the 
name  of  a  congregation." — Hisiory  of  Dissenters,  vol.  iv.  p.  319. 

*  Researches  ia  Asia,  p.  80. 


ANTIQUITY  OF  FORMS  OF  PRAYER.  145 

cradle  to  the  grave,  speak  to  his  heart  with  a  power 
which  no  extemporaneous  prayer  can  have.  In  these 
words  his  fathers  have  worshipped.  These  prayers, 
perhaps,  have  trembled  upon  the  lips  of  some  whom 
he  has  loved,  but  who  long  since  have  passed  away 
to  their  reward.  By  the  chain  of  association  they 
unite  him  to  the  departed.  They  recall  them  to  his 
memory,  and  thus,  by  means  of  these  petitions,  he 
lives  again  in  scenes  which  have  long  since  gone. 
Oh,  solemnly  and  sweetly  do  these  words  and  these 
services  come  home  to  the  Churchman's  heart !  He 
would  not  part  with  them — so  rich  in  hallowed  recol- 
lections— for  all  the  eloquence  that  modern  wisdom 
could  devise.  He  clings  to  them  through  life,  and 
trusts  that  the  last  sound  which  shall  fall  upon  his 
dying  ear,  will  be  that  solemn  prayer  by  which  the 
Church  commends  the  departing  spirit  to  the  mercy 
of  its  God.* 

Thus  it  is,  that  a  thousand  remembrances  gather 
around  our  time-honored  Ritual  and  commend  it  to 
our  affection.  We  have  seen,  that  in  this  manner 
the  followers  of  our  Master  worshipped,  even  in  the 
Apostolic  age.  When,  therefore,  we  are  called  to 
abandon  it,  and  adopt  in  its  place  the  extemporaneous 
effusions  of  man  in  our  public  worship,  may  we  not 
reply  in  the  words  of  Scripture — "  We  have  no  such 
custom,  neither  the  Churches  of  God."  We  will  not 
fear  to  walk  in  our  Lord's  footsteps  and  to   follow 

*  When  George  Herbert  was  on  his  death-bed,  he  said  to  Mr.  Dun- 
can, who  had  come  to  visit  him — "  Sir,  I  see  by  your  habit  that  you 
are  a  priest,  and  desire  you  to  pray  with  me."  Which  being  granted, 
Mr.  Duncan  asked  him — "What  prayers?"  To  which  Mr.  Herbert's 
answer  was — "0,  sir,  tlie  prayers  of  my  mother,  the  Church  of  Eng- 
land :  no  other  prayers  are  equal  to  them." — Walton's  Lives,  p.  339. 
10 


146  ANTIQUITY    OF  FORMS  OF  PRAYER. 

those  ancient  confessors  and  martyrs,  who,  in  the 
eadiest,  purest  days  of  our  faith,  amidst  sufferings 
and  trials  won  their  way  to  Heaven.  Did  they  lack 
spirituality,  or  find  their  devotion  cramped  and  nar- 
rowed down  by  the  words  of  a  Liturgy  ?  Has  the 
whole  Christian  Church  been  in  a  grievous  error  on 
this  subject,  until  within  the  last  three  hundred 
years  ?  No,  brethren ;  and  the  best  we  can  do  in 
our  feebleness  is,  to  tread  in  the  old  paths,  and  "  hold 
fast  to  the  form  of  sound  words  "  which  was  used 
"  in  our  fathers'  days,  and  in  the  old  time  before 
them."  Our  venerable  Liturgy  speaks  to  us  in  the 
language  of  God's  own  word.  Let  us  strive  to  im- 
bibe its  holy  spirit,  and  we  shall  need  no  better 
preparation  for  death.  And  when  at  last  the  worship 
of  the  earthly  sanctuary  is  over,  we  shall  be  admitted 
to  join  in  that  service  which  the  redeemed  in  glory 
use,  as  ever,  day  without  night,  they  circle  the  throne 
rejoicing,  and  raise  the  lofty  anthem — "  Worthy  is 
the  Lamb  that  was  slain,  to  receive  power,  and 
riches,  and  wisdom,  and  strength,  and  honor,  and 
glory,  and  blessing." 


V. 

HISTORY  OF  OUR  LITURGY. 

Mine  is  no  solitary  choice, 
See  here  the  seals  of  saints  impress'd  ; 

The  prayer  of  millions  swells  my  voice, 
The  mind  of  ages  fills  my  breast. 

Cunningham. 

Tpie  sixteenth  century  opened  upon  a  scene  un- 
equalled in  the  history  of  the  world.  The  power  of 
the  Church  of  Rome  was  dominant  through  Europe. 
The  opposition  of  the  Albigenses  had  been  extin- 
guished in  their  blood,  and  all  was  apparently  peace 
in  Western  Christendom.  The  institution  of  the 
Orders  of  St.  Francis  and  St.  Dominic  had  added  a 
new  element  of  strength  to  the  Romish  See.  The 
members  of  these  fraternities  wandered  through 
every  land,  mingling  with  the  mighty  masses  of  the 
great  city,  or  diligently  in  each  lonely  valley  seeking 
out  "  the  few  sheep  in  the  wilderness,"  and  every 
where  they  were  the  sworn  servants  of  the  Vatican 
— ready  to  teach  its  doctrines,  and  to  do  its  bidding. 
The  Pontiffs  acted  in  the  spirit  of  their  loftiest  pre- 
tensions, deposing  princes,  and  bestowing  kingdoms 
at  their  will,  yet  every  where  they  seemed  to  be 
obeyed. 

But  this  universal  peace,  was  hollow  and  deceptive. 
A  day  of  awakening  for  the  human  mind  was  at 
hand.  Learning  had  begun  to  come  down  from  its 
high    places,    to    enlighten   the    multitude.     The  re- 


148  HISTORY  OF    OUR    LITURGY. 

mains  of  that  literature,  which  ages  before  had  called 
forth  the  plaudits  of  assembled  Greece,  or  awakened 
the  genius  of  Rome's  noblest  orators,  was  again  taken 
down  from  the  dusty  shelves  of  monasteries ;  and 
thus  "  in  this  setting  part  of  Time,"  a  new  audience 
was  created  to  listen  to  the  strains  of  Homer,  or  to 
muse  over  the  glorious  reveries  of  Plato.  Communing 
with  the  mighty  dead,  and  dwelling  upon  the  noble 
works  which  they  had  bequeathed  to  us — those  forms 
of  antique  beauty,  which  were  for  ever  the  bloom  of 
an  imperishable  youth — the  intellect  of  man  was 
quickened  into  action,  and  reason  once  more  asserted 
her  claims.  The  moral  sense,  too,  of  that  generation 
was  outraged  by  the  sight  of  a  pontiff  like  Julius, 
emulating  the  fame  of  a  warrior,  and  embroiling 
kingdoms  in  his  mad  ambition  ;  or  one  like  Leo, 
passing  life  in  an  unbroken  dream  of  graceful  volup- 
tuousness, and  scoffing  at  the  mysteries  of  our  faith 
as  long-since  refuted  fables.  Beneath  this  quiet  sur- 
face, therefore,  the  public  mind  was  stirred  up  to  its 
lowest  depths.  A  restless,  eager  spirit  of  inquiry  was 
abroad.  The  question,  "  What  is  truth  ?"  was  earn- 
estly asked.  A  craving  after  spiritual  freedom  and 
purity  was  deeply  felt.  The  successor  of  St.  Peter 
stood  upon  a  volcano,  though  the  landscape  was 
smiling  around  him,  and  he  perceived  not  the  be- 
ginning of  its  heavings. 

Is  it  wonderful,  then,  when  the  storm  at  last  came, 
and  the  human  intellect  burst  the  fetters  by  which 
Rome  would  bind  it  down,  that  a  scene  of  wild  con- 
fusion ensued  ?  Was  it  not  natural,  that  men  should 
pass  at  once  to  the  opposite  extreme,  and,  rejoicing 
in   their   newly   acquired    freedom,    indulge   in   the 


HISTORY  OF   OUR  LITURGY.  149 

Strangest  eccentricities  ?  It  was  ;  and  therefore  we 
are  prepared  to  behold  in  that  an  age  "  emulous  of 
change" — an  age  whose  motto  was — "old  things 
have  passed  away — all  things  have  become  new." 
In  less  than  fifty  years  from  the  first  controversy  be- 
tween Luther  and  Tetzel,  Protestantism  had  attained 
to  its  highest  ascendancy  on  tlie  Continent.  For  the 
first  time  the  love  of  novelty  could  be  indulged,  and 
this  liberty  was  used  to  the  utmost. 

The  first  half  of  the  sixteenth  century  was  the  age 
of  experiments,  the  fruits  of  which,  in  weal  or  woe, 
this  generation  has  inherited.  Among  the  other 
changes  made — as  we  showed  you  in  the  last  lecture 
— was  that  which  related  to  the  manner  of  public 
worship.  Those  societies  which  had  abandoned  the 
Church  with  her  Apostolic  ministiy,  in  many  cases 
gave  up  her  ancient  Ritual  also,  and  trusted  to  have 
their  devotions  led  by  the  extemporaneous  effusions 
of  those  who  might  minister  to  them.* 

*  The  early  Reformers  themselves  were  often  too  clear-sighted  not 
to  perceive  the  evil  of  this  step,  but  it  was  taken  by  their  followers, 
and,  in  truth,  naturally  grew  out  of  the  state  of  feeling  we  have  de- 
scribed. We  will  give  some  of  their  recorded  opinions  in  favor  of  a 
Liturgy. 

"  P'or  so  much  as  concerneth  the  form  of  prayer  and  ecclesiastical 
rites,  I  much  approve  that  it  be  determined  so  that  it  may  not  be  law- 
ful for  the  ministers  in  their  adminisiration  to  vary  from  it  ;  as  well  to 
help  the  simplicity  and  unskilfulness  of  some,  as  that  the  uniformity 
of  all  the  several  congregations  may  better  appear  ;  and,  finally,  that 
the  desultory  and  capricious  lightness  of  such  as  affect  novelties  may 
be  encountered  and  stopped." — Calvin's  Letter  to  Protector  Somer- 
set. 

"  We  account  it  grievous  to  contemn  all  those  holy  Churches  which, 
from  the  times  of  the  Apostles,  and  of  the  primitive  Church,  unto  this 
day,  have  celebrated  the  public  worship  of  God  out  of  prescribed 
forms — wherefore,  we  blame  the  over-nice  singularity  of  those  men 
who  would  cast  out  all  prescribed  forms  from  divine  worship." — Let- 


I50  HISTORY   OF   OUR    LITURGY. 

In  this  respect,  as  in  all  others  in  this  great  crisis 
of  her  history,  th&  Church  in  England  was  enabled 
to  act  more  wisely.  As  she  had  retained  the  Apos- 
tolic ministry  which  had  been  handed  down  for 
1500  years,  so  she  preserved  her  Ritual,  only  throw- 
ing out  those  things  which  were  not  primitive,  but  were 
corruptions  which  had  gradually  crept  in  during  the 
darkness  of  the  i^w  preceding  centuries.  Thus  our 
service  was  merely  restored  to  its  ancient  purity. 
Each  view,  therefore,  which  we  gain  of  the  true  state 
of  feeling  in  those  times  of  excitement  and  change, 
deepens  our  gratitude  to  that  kind  Providence  which 
so  plainly  led  our  Mother  Church  "  in  the  way 
wherein  she  should  go," — overruled  every  thing  for 
good — and  prepared  her  to  be  in  all  ages  "  the 
Witness  and  Keeper  "  of  the  Truth. 

This  evening,  then,  we  will  endeavor  to  go  back  to 
the  early  ages  of  the  Church,  and  show  you  the 
origin  of  our  Liturgy — the  different  changes  through 
which  it  passed,  as  it  was  gradually  compiled  in  the 
course  of  centuries,  until  it  finally  assumed  the  form 
in  which  it  now  is  in  our  Prayer  Book.  It  will  surely 
be  interesting  to  us   as    Churchmen,  to  know  from 

ter  from  the  Walachrian  Classis  of  Zealand  to  the  assembly  of  Divines 
in  London,  1646. 

*'  Any  one  may  satisfy  himself,  from  a  view  of  all  the  particulars', 
that  in  the  ancient  Church,  the  whole  of  divine  worship  was  adminis- 
tered by  prescribed  forms.  The  question  is,  whether  every  minister 
should  have  liberty  of  obtruding  private  prayers,  which  he  has  him- 
self composed,  with  which  no  one  else  is  acquainted,  and  to  which  the 
Church  is  unaccustomed,  instead  of  forms  matured  with  grave  deliber- 
ation by  the  servants  of  Christ,  revised  by  the  higher  oiificers  of  the 
Church,  and  approved  by  the  Synod.  This  liberty  we  do  not  grant." 
Preface  to  the  Agenda  or  Book  of  Common  Prayer  in  the  Reformed 
Churches  of  Poland  and  Lithuania.     Dated  at  Thorn,  A.  D.,  1636. 


HISTORY   OF    OUR    LITURGY.  15I 

whence  came  this  precious  legacy,  which,  while  it 
ministers  to  the  spirituality  of  those  who  now  unite  in 
its  services,  has  performed  also  the  same  holy  office 
for  many  generations  of  the  saints  who  have  gone 
before  us.  There  is  another  object,  also,  to  be  an- 
swered by  this  investigation.  We  are  often  told  that 
the  Church  in  England,  from  which  our  own  is  de- 
rived, was  founded  by  the  Romish  Church,  and  has 
merely  seceded  from  her,  while  our  Prayer  Book  is 
nothing  but  an  alteration  of  the  Romish  Breviary.  I 
trust  that  the  historical  inquiries  into  which  we  shall 
be  led  in  this  Lecture,  will  demonstrate  to  your  satis- 
faction, that  neither  of  these  charges  is  correct — that 
the  British  Church  existed,  pure  and  independent, 
centuries  before  the  Bishop  of  Rome  had  any  author- 
ity in  that  land,  and  that  her  Ritual  is  derived  from 
the  Primitive  Liturgies  which  were  in  existence  dur- 
ing those  early  ages,  in  which  corruption  had  not 
yet  begun  to  invade  the  Church  of  Rome. 

Let  us  look,  then,  at  the  origin  of  the  Church  in 
that  island.  Is  she  indebted  to  Rome  for  her  exist- 
ence? So  far  from  this  being  the  case,  we  know 
that  the  Christian  faith  was  professed  in  Britain  even 
in  the  Apostles'  days,  and  when  the  Church  of  Rome 
herself  was  but  in  the  feebleness  of  her  infancy. 
While  the  Pantheon  was  yet  filled  with  its  multitude 
of  gods,  and  day  by  day  there  ascended  the  smoke  of 
sacrifice  to  the  Capitoline  Jupiter — when  Christianity 
in  Rome  was  only  recognized  as  a  "  pernicious  super- 
stition,"* the  adherents  of  which  were  doomed  to  the 
fire  and  the  stake,  even  then,  the  name  of  Christ  was 
honored  on  the  banks  of  the  Thames,  and  prayers 

*  Tacitus,  Annal.  xv.  44. 


152  HISTORY    OF    OUR  LITURGY. 

went  up  to  Him  in  tlie  strange  tongue  of  those  on 
whom  Cicero  poured  his  contempt  when  he  wrote  to 
Atticus,*  and  who  formed  the  subject  of  his  jest  with 
Trcbatius,  as  he  warned  him  against  a  horde  of 
Celtic  barbarians.f  This  fact  is  fully  proved  by  the 
testimony  of  ancient  writers.  Gildas,  a  native  of 
Britain,  and  Abbot  of  Bangor,  speaking  of  the  birth 
of  our  Lord  in  the  days  of  Tiberius,  and  the  fatal 
victory  of  the  Romans  over  Boadicea,  which  took 
place  about  the  middle  of  the  reign  of  Nero,  says 
— "  In  the  mean  time  " — that  is,  in  the  interval  be- 
tween these  two  events — "  Christ,  the  true  Sun, 
afforded  his  rays — that  is,  the  knowledge  of  his  pre- 
cepts—  to  this  island,  shivering  with  icy  cold.";}: 
Eusebius,  when  showing  that  the  Apostles  "  preached 
their  doctrine  in  the  remotest  cities  and  countries," 
adds  particularly,  "  that  some  passed  over  the  ocean, 
£7ri  ra^  na\o).iiiva^  BpiTTcxyindi  k?/o'o?^?',  those  which 
are '"ailed  the  British  islands.  "§  TertuUian,  A.  D.  190, 
says — "  There  are  places  in  Britain  inaccessible  to 
Roman  arms,  which  were  subdued  to  Christ"! 
Origen,  A.  D.  230,  writes,  "When  did  Britain,  before 
the  coming  of  Christ,  unite  in  the  worship  of  one 
God?""[[  and  again,"  The  power  of  God  our  Saviour  is 
ever  with  them  in  Britain,  who  are  divided  from  our 
world. "'''^'*      And,   to  give  one   more    authority,  St. 

*  Ep.  ad  Att.  iv    i6.  t  Ep.  Fam.  vii.  7.  ii. 

X  Stillingfleet's  Orig.  Brit.  p.  4.  According  to  Usher,  (Brit.  Eccles. 
Aiitiq.  p.  278,)  Gildas  wrote  his  history  about  A.  D.  564.  To  this 
Du  Pin  agrees,  [EccLs.  Hist.  Cent,  vi.)  and  also  Collier,  (Eccles.  Hist. 
lib.  i.  p.  61.) 

§  Dem.  Evang.  lib.  iii.  cap.  7.  p.  112.     Paris,  1628. 

II  Adv.  Jud.  c.  7.  H  In  Ezek.  Rom.  iv. 

**  Luke  c.  i. :  Rom.  vi. 


HISTORY    OF    OUR    LITURGY.  153 

Chrysostom  says — "  The  British  Islands,  situated  be- 
yond our  sea,  and  lying  in  the  very  ocean,  have  felt 
the  power  of  the  word,  for  even  there  churches  are 
built  and  altars  erected.""* 

The  unvarying  tradition  of  the  early  Church  points 
out  the  Apostle  Paul  as  the  one  by  whom  the  doc- 
trines of  the  Cross  were  preached  in  that  land. 
Clemens  Romanus  and  Jerome  speak  of  his  travelling 
"  to  the  utmost  bounds  of  the  West " — of  his  "  preach- 
ing as  far  as  the  extremity  of  the  earth  " — and 
preaching  the  Gospel  in  the  western  parts  "  —  ex- 
pressions which  Stillingfleet  has  fully  shown  from 
other  writers  were  always  used  in  that  age  with 
reference  to  the  British  isles. f  He  has  also  classified 
the  evidence  on  this  subject  by  showing — ist.  From 
St.  Paul's  circumstances,  that  he  had  leisure  and 
opportunity  enough  to  have  gone  to  Britain.  2d. 
From  the  circumstances  of  Britain,  there  was  encour- 
agement and  invitation  enough  for  him  to  have  gone. 
3d.  From  the  circumstances  of  the  rest  of  the 
Apostles,  that  he  was  the  most  likely  to  have  gone 
of  any.  The  most  direct  proof  on  this  point,  how- 
ever, is  derived  from  an  assertion  by  Theodoret, 
which  shows  the  belief  in  his  day.  He  says — ■^*  Our 
fishermen  and  publicans,  and  he  who  was  a  tent" 
maker,  carried  the  Evangelical  precepts  to  all  nations  ; 
not  only  to  those  who  lived  under  the  Roman  juris- 
diction,  but  also  to  the  Scythians  and  the  Hunns  ; 
besides  to  the  Indians,  Britains,  and  Germans,":^ 
We  have,  therefore,  no  hesitation  in  agreeing  with 
the  learned  Camden,  when  he  says — **  From  these 

*  Tom,  vi.  p.  635.  f  Orig,  Brit,  p,  39. 

X  Theod.  Serm.  ix  de  legibus,  torn.  iv.  p.  610.     Paris,  1642. 


154  HISTORY   OF   OUR   LITURGY. 

authorities  it  follows,  not  only  that  the  Gospel  was 
preached  in  Britain  in  the  times  of  the  Apostles,  but 
that  St.  Paul  himself  was  the  preacher  of  it"^ 

Such  then  is  the  historical  evidence  of  the  early- 
establishment  of  the  Church  in  that  island,  and  in 
every  succeeding  age  we  can  clearly  trace  its  progress. 
The  old  historian  Bede  tells  us  of  Kings  who  gloried 
in  the  Cross,  and  sought  to  aid  its  triumphs,  while  it 
is  to  this '  cause  we  must  ascribe  the  gradual  dying 
out  of  the  superstition  of  the  Druids,  which  after  the 
second  century  of  Christianity  is  no  longer  to  be  met 
with  in  the  history  of  the  country.  Neither  did  her 
remote  situation  shield  this  Church  from  the  rage  of 
persecution,  but  in  the  reign  of  Diocletian  she  was 
called  to  give  up  also  her  witnesses  for  the  truth. 
There,  too,  "  the  blood  of  the  martyrs  was  the  seed 
of  the  Church."  Foremost  in  that  glorious  band 
who  "  counted  not  their  lives  dear  unto  themselves," 
the  annals  of  the  day  tell  us  of  St  Alban,  whose 
name  still  remains  in  the  scene  of  his  simple  faith, 
when  more  than  fifteen  centuries  have  passed  away. 
Her  Bishops  were  present  and  assisting  at  the  Council 
of  Aries,  convened  in  314  by  the  Emperor  Constan- 
tine  from  all  the  "Western  Churches,  to  take  cognizance 
of  the  Donatist  controversy,  "f     Again,  in  the  year 

•  Britannia,  Intro,  p.  86. 
t  Their  subscriptions  stand  in  this  way — 
Eborius  Episcx)pus,  de  civitate  Eboracensi  Provincia  Britannia. 
Restitutus  Episcopus,  de  civitate  Londinensi. 
Adelsius  Episcopus,  de  civitate  colonia  Londinensium. 
The   Diocese   of  this  last   Bishop  has  been   the   subject  of  much 
dispute,  since  it  is  evidently  a  mistake  as  it  here  stands.     Archbishop 
Usher  supposes  it  to  be  Cair-Cohm,  (Prim.  60,  195,)  which  means  the 
city  of  Chester.     Selden  (in  Eutch.  118)  and  Sir  H.  Spelman  (Cone,  i, 
p.  39)  both  refer  it  to  the  Old  Colony  of  Ca?nalodunum.   The  supposition 


HISTORY  OF   OUR  LITURGY.  1 55 

325,  we  find  the  British  Bishops  at  the  Council  of 
Nice;  also  in  347  at  Sardica;  and  in  359  at  the 
Synod  of  Aminium,  where  Bishops  from  all  parts  of 
the  West  had  assembled.* 

This,  then,  is  the  first  historical  fact  to  which  I 
would  call  your  attention.  You  perceive  that  the 
British  Church  was  not  derived  originally  from  that 
of  Rome.  She  subsisted  entirely  independent  of  the 
Church  in  Italy  until  the  close  of  the  sixth  century, 
bound  to  her  only  by  friendship  and  amity,  as  she 
was    to    all   other  Churches  throughout    the  world. 

of  Stillingfleet  {Orig.  Brit.  77)  is,  that  he  was  from  the  third  province 
of  Britannia  Secunda,  where  there  was  a  colony  of  the  Eleventh  Legion. 
Therefore,  this  Bishop  Adelsius  came  ex  Civit.  Col.  Leg.  11,  which  an 
ignorant  transcriber  might  easily  turn  to  ex  Civit.  Col.  Londin.  Still- 
ingfleet also  says,  "There  being  but  three  bishops  present  at  the 
Council  of  Aries,  is  so  far  from  being  an  argument  that  there  were  no 
more  in  Britain,  that  it  is  rather  an  argument  to  the  contrary,  since  it 
was  the  custom  to  send  but  one  or  two  out  of  a  province  where  they 
were  most  numerous."  (p.  78.)  This  is  confirmed  by  the  Emperor's 
summons  to  Chrestus,  Bishop  of  Syracuse,  which  is  the  only  imperial 
summons  to  this  council  extant,  {Euseb.  Eccl.  Hist.  lib.  x.  cap.  5,) 
and  which  Baronius  believes  was  in  the  same  form  with  the  rest.  In 
this  summons,  Chrestus  is  required  to  come  out  of  that  province  and 
bring  two  priests  with  him.  And  St.  Hilary,  in  speaking  of  the  coun- 
cils in  his  day,  says—"  That  one  or  two  Bishops  were  sent  for  out  of 
a  Province."     (Collier-s  Eccles.  Hist.  v.  i.  p.  26.) 

It  is  worth  while  to  observe  the  conduct  of  this  council  to  the 
Bishop  of  Rome,  who  was  not  present,  that  we  may  see  how  little  in 
that  day  they  dreamed  of  his  supremacy.  They  send  their  decrees  to 
him  only  "to  make  them  more  public."  They  call  him  "Dear 
Brother,"  and  express  their  regret  that  he  had  not  been  there,  as  they 
would  have  been  glad  of  his  vote  and  company.  Or,  as  it  is  in  the 
Latin — "Et  utinam,  Frater  Dilectissime,  ad  hoc  tantum  Spectaculum 
interesses,  et  te  pariter  nobiscum  judicante,  coetus  noster  majore  latitia 
exultasset."  {Collier,  v.  i.  p.  28,  and  Stillingfleet' s  Orig.  Brit.  p. 
86.) 

There  were  also  present  with  the  British  Bishops,  Sacerdos,  a  Pres- 
byter, and  Arminius,  a  deacon  of  the  Church. 

*  Collier's  Eccl.  Hist.  v.  i.  p.  28,  37. 


156  HISTORY  OF    OUR    LITURGY. 

She  owed  no  subjection  to  any  foreign  power,  nor  is 
there  a  record  of  any  Romish  ecclesiastic  in  that 
island  until  the  year  596.* 

What,  then,  during  these  six  centuries,  was  the 
Liturgy  used  in  our  Mother  Church  ?  We  mentioned 
to  you  in  the  last  Lecture,  that  there  were  still 
existing  four  great  Liturgies,  which  had  come  down 
to  us  from  Primitive  times,  and  were  the  original 
sources  from  which  all  others  were  derived.  These 
were  called  after  the  names  of  St.  James,  St.  John,  St. 
Peter,  and  St.  Mark,  and  from  their  origin  in  the  fii^t 
age  of  our  faith,  were  of  course  similar  in  their  general 
features.  The  Liturgy  of  St.  John  was  used  not 
only  in  the  East  by  the  Ephesian  Church,  but  also  in 
Western  Europe,  and  from  the  Galilean  Church  the 
Christians  in  Britain  received  it.  Such,  at  all  events, 
was  the  testimony  of  tradition  among  those  by  whom 
it  had  been  adopted.  The  ancient  author,  whose 
tract  has  been  published  by  Spelman,  and  who  is 
allowed  by  all  critics  to  have  written  not  later  than 
the  beginning  of  the  eighth  century,  thus  positively 
affirms  it — "John  the  Evangelist  first  chanted  the 
Galilean  course;  then    afterwards,  the  blessed  Poly- 

*  It  was  a  Church  ancient  and  glorious  many  hundred  years  before 
Popery  began,  being  planted  by  the  hands  of  the  Apostles,  as  some 
affirm  upon  no  improbable  conjecture  ;  but  we  are  assured  from  his- 
tory, very  near  those  days And  this  British  Church  was 

renowned  throughout  the  world,  flourishing  under  Bishops  and  a 
glorious  priesthood  till  about  the  seventh  century  ;  when  the  Bishop 
of  Rome  claiming  a  supremacy  over  other  Bishops,  the  Church  of 
Rome  claimed  the  same  over  other  Churches,  and  from  the  precedence 
of  an  elder  sister  leaped  into  the  authority  of  a  parent.  .  .  .  Under 
her  corruptions,  this  Church,  like  her  other  sisters,  sate  down  a 
contented  captive  many  hundred  years,  till  the  great  release  of  the 
Reformation."  Bisse  on  "  The  beauty  of  holiness  in  the  Common 
Prayer,'^  p.  II,  12. 


HISTORY  OF  OUR  LITURGY.  1 57 

carp,  disciple  of  St.  John ;  then  afterwards,  thirdly, 
Irenseus,  who  was  Bishop  of  Lyons  in  Gaul,  chanted 
the  same  course  in  Gaul."^ 

The  Church  of  Rome  during  this  period  was  using 
the  Liturgy  of  St.  Peter,  which  varied  in  some  par- 
ticulars from  that  of  St.  John,  which  the  Western 
Church  had  adopted.  We  learn  this  from  the 
interrogation  which  St  Augustine  addressed  to  Pope 
Gregory,  at  the  close  of  the  sixth  century.  He 
asked — "  Why  the  customs  of  Churches  are  different, 
when  their  faith  is  the  same,  and  one  custom  of 
Liturgy  prevails  in  the  Church  of  Rome,  another  in 
those  of  Gaul  ?"t  And  again,  in  his  effort  to  bring 
the  British  Church  under  the  dominion  of  Rome,  he 
addressed  her  Bishops  in  the  following  terms — "  In 
many  respects  you  act  in  a  manner  contrary  to  our 
customs,  and  indeed  to  those  of  the  universal  Church  ; 
and  yet  if  you  will  obey  me  in  these  three  things,  to 
celebrate  Easter  at  the  proper  time ;  to  perform  the 
office  of  Baptism,  in  which  we  are  born  again  to 
God,  according  to  the  custom  of  the  Holy  Roman 
and  Apostolical  Church  ;  and  with  us  to  preach  the 
Word  of  God  to  the  English  nation ;  we  will  tolerate 
all  your  other  customs,  though  contrary  to  our  ozunrX 
It  is  evident,  therefore,  that  in  her  early  day  the 
British  Church  did  not  receive  her  Ritual  from  Rome. 

When,  then,  first  commenced  the  intercourse 
between  these  two  Churches  ?  It  was  in  the  year 
596   that    Gregory,    Bishop    of  Rome,    carried    into 

*  Spelman,  Concilia,  torn.  i.  p.  176. 

t  Bede,  Hist.  Eccles.  lib.  i.  c.  21. 

X  Ibid.  lib.  ii.  c.  2.  Collier  in  his  Eccles.  Hist.  lib.  i.  p.  49-51,  has 
given  the  points  of  difference  between  the  Roman  Ritual,  and  that  of 
the  Gallican  and  Anglican  churches. 


158  HISTORY    OF    OUR    LITURGY. 

execution  a  plan  he  had  long  cherished  of  sending 
missionaries  to  aid  in  the  conversion  of  the  Saxons. 
For  this  purpose  St.  Augustine  was  selected,  with 
forty  monks  from  his  own  monastery  at  Rome. 
Taking  with  him  interpreters  from  France,  he  landed 
at  the  island  of  Thanet  with  his  company,  in  the 
month  of  August  of  that  year.  He  found  the  Church 
in  Britain  regularly  established,  although  weakened 
by  the  opposition  of  the  Pagan  Saxons,  who  had  in 
some  parts  of  the  country  driven  out  her  Bishops 
and  caused  them  to  take  refuge  in  Wales ;  "  for  the 
Saxons,"  as  the  old  English  Chronicles  tell  us,  "left 
not  the  face  of  Christianity  wherever  they  did  pre- 
vail. "^^  The  worship  of  the  Church  was,  as  we  have 
shown,  with  their  own  ancient  Liturgy,  while  their 
Episcopal  organization  is  proved  by  the  corres- 
pondence which  took  place  between  Augustine  and 
Gregory.  When  Augustine,  in  asking  instructions, 
inquires — "  How  he  ought  to  manage  with  respect  to 
the  Bishops  of  Britain  ?"  the  Pope  replied,  "  As  to 
the  Bishops  of  Britain,  he  put  them  all  under  his 
jurisdiction."'!-  From  whence  he  derived  his  right 
thus  to  give  Augustine  authority  over  an  independent 
Church,  it  would  be  difficult  to  show. 

In  accordance  with  these  directions,  when  firmly 
established  in  the  island,  Augustine  invited  the  British 
Bishops  to  a  conference.  The  meeting  took  place  on 
the  banks  of  the  Severn,  at  a  place  long  afterwards 
called  Augustine's  Oak.  There  were  seven  English 
Bishops  present, — probably  from  St.  David's,  Llan- 
daff,  Llanbadarn,  Bangor,  St.  Asaph,  Somerset,  and 

•  Stillingfleet's  Orig.  Brit,  p.  366. 
t  Collier's  Eccles.  Hist.  1.  ii.  p.  68. 


HISTORY  OF   OUR  LITURGY.  159 

Cornwall  —  besides  the  most  learned  men  from 
Bangor- Iscoed,  with  Dinoth,  their  abbot. "^  No 
efforts  of  Augustine,  however,  could  induce  them  to 
submit  to  the  jurisdiction  of  Rome.  His  proposals 
were  at  once  rejected,  and  the  reply  of  Dinoth,  which 
is  still  preserved,  gives  most  fully  the  views  of  his 
Church.  Speaking  in  the  name  of  his  brethren,  he 
said — "That  the  British  Churches  owe  the  deference 
of  brotherly  kindness  and  charity  to  the  Church  of 
God,  and  to  the  Pope  of  Rome,  and  to  all  Christians. 
But  other  obedience  than  this,  they  did  not  know  to 
be  due  to  him  whom  they  called  Pope  :  and  for  their 
parts,  they  were  under  the  jurisdiction  of  the  Bishop 
of  Caerleon  upon  Usk,  who,  under  God,  was  their 
spiritual  overseer  and  director,  "f  Thus  it  was  that 
the  free  spirit  of  our  old  Mother  Church  spake  out. 

But  power  was  on  the  side  of  Rome,  and  all  the 
weight  of  her  influence  was  put  forth  to  bring  the 
Church  in  that  distant  island  under  subjection.  The 
Saxons,  too,  weakened  her  ranks  by  their  assaults, 
and  on  one  occasion  1200  priests  and  monks  were 
slaughtered  together,  when  they  had  posted  them- 
selves on  an  eminence  near  the  field  of  battle,  to  pray 
for  the  success  of  their  countrymen.:}:  Often  there- 
fore must  the  members  of  that  stricken  and  suffering 
Church  have  been  forced  to  recall  as  prophetic  the 

*  Bede,  1.  ii.  c.  2. 

t  Collier  tells  us,  {Eccles.  Hist.  1.  ii.  p.  76,)  that  this  passage,  first 
published  by  Spelman,  {Concilia,  v.  i.  p.  108,  109,)  was  copied  by 
him  **  from  an  old  manuscript,  which  had  also  been  transcribed  from 
an  older."  The  Romanists  have  attacked  its  genuineness,  but  the 
reader  will  see  their  arguments  and  objections  answered,  in  Collier,  as 
above.  Stillingfieet'' s  Grig.  Brit.  p.  371,  and  Bitigkam's  Antiq.  Eccl, 
ii.  9.  X  Bede,  1.  ii.  c.  2. 


l6o  HISTORY   OF   OUR    LITURGY. 

parting  threat  which  Augustine  had  addressed  to 
them  at  the  close  of  his  conference — "  I  foresee  that 
if  you  will  not  have  peace  with  brethren,  you  will 
have  war  with  foes  ;  and  if  you  will  not  preach  the 
way  of  life  to  the  English,  you  will  suffer  deadly 
vengeance  at  their  hands."  Yet  even  thus  depressed 
— with  the  savage  cruelty  of  the  Pagans  on  the  one 
side,  and  the  opposition  of  their  Christian  Brethren 
on  the  other — the  old  British  Church  struggled  on, 
maintaining  her  rightful  and  dignified  position,  and 
only  yielding,  at  last,  when  reduced  by  the  strong 
arm  of  secular  force.  It  took  therefore  five  centuries 
of  conflict  to  compel  her  into  submission  to  the 
Romish  See,  nor  was  it  until  the  Norman  conquest 
that  the  authority  of  the  Pope  can  be  considered  as 
firmly  settled.* 

*  "  There  doth  not  appear  much  of  the  Pope's  power  in  this  realm 
before  the  Conquest.  But  ll;e  Pope  having  favored  and  supported 
King  William  I.  in  his  invasion  of  this  kingdom,  took  that  opportu- 
nity of  enlarging  his  encroachments,  and  in  this  King's  reign  began 
to  send  his  legates  hither  ;  and  prevailed  with  Henry  I.  to  give  up  the 
donation  of  Bishoprics  ;  and  in  the  time  of  King  Stephen  gained  the 
prerogative  of  appeals  ;  and  in  the  time  of  Henry  II.  exempted  all 
clerks  from  the  secular  power. 

"  And  not  long  after  this,  by  a  general  excommunication  of  kings 
and  people  for  several  years,  because  they  would  not  suffer  an  Arch- 
bishop to  be  imposed  upon  them,  King  John  was  reduced  to  such 
straits,  that  he  was  obliged  to  surrender  his  kingdoms  to  the  Pope, 
and  to  receive  them  again,  to  hold  of  him  at  a  rent  of  a  thousand 
marks. 

"And  in  the  following  reign  of  Henry  III.,  partly  from  the  profit 
of  our  best  Church  benefices,  which  were  generally  given  to  Italians 
and  others  residing  at  the  Court  of  Rome,  and  partly  by  the  taxes 
imposed  by  the  Pope,  there  went  yearly  out  of  the  kingdom,  seventy 
thousand  pounds — an  immense  sum  in  those  days."  Bunis^  Ecclesi- 
astical Law,  \.  iii.  p.  io8. 

Such  was  the  gradual  progress  of  Papal  encroachments  in  Eng- 
land.    It  will  be  observed,  that  the  reign  of  William  the  Conqueror 


HISTORY   OF    OUR    LITURGY.  l6l 

Then,  for  four  centuries  and  a  half,  the  same  dark- 
ness which  had  settled  upon  the  rest  of  Western 
Christendom,  seemed  to  have  gathered  over  Britain 
also.  The  spirit  of  Popery  everywhere  prevailed, 
and  the  Church  of  England  was  bowed  down  at  the 
feet  of  a  foreign  Bishop.  Yet  the  breath  and  pulse 
of  life  had  not  yet  ceased.  Scattered  through  the 
land  during  all  these  years  were  those  who  saw  her 
fall,  and  mourned  over  it  in  secret.  Occasionally, 
too,  they  spake  out,  and  boldly  bore  witness  against 
this  corruption,  although  it  was  at  the  peril  of  their 
lives.  The  page  of  Ecclesiastical  History  in  this  way 
records  the  names  of  Grostete — whose  best  encomium 
is  that  exulting  exclamation  of  Pope  Innocent,  on 
hearing  of  his  death,  "  I  rejoice,  and  let  every  true 
son  of  the  Church  rejoice  with  me,  that  my  great 
enemy  is  removed  " — and  Fitzralph,  and  Wiclif,  who 
in  succession  entered  their  protest  against  the  evils  of 
Romish  dominion.  These  were  men  who  knew  the 
right,  and  having  solemnly  counted  the  cost,  shrunk 
not  from  an  open  conflict  with  the  crushing  power  of 
Rome.  Alone,  uncheered  by  the  loud  voice  of 
popular  sympathy,  supported  only  by  the  purity  of 
their  intentions  and  the  goodness  of  their  cause,  they 
stepped  forth  from  their  cloistered  retirement,  and 
endured  "  the  dust  and  heat "  of  this  battle,  which 
was  waged  for  the  best  interests  of  man.  For  them, 
persecution  had  no  perils  by  which  it  could  terrify ; 
but,  receiving  the  torch  of  truth  from  each  other's 
hands,  they  bore  it  steadily  onward,  and   thus  acted 


commenced  in   1066,  and  that  of  Henry  VIII.  in  1509.     The  period 
between  embraces  only  443  years. 

II 


l62  HISTORY  OF    OUR    LITURGY. 

as  the  heralds  of  the  coming  reformation.*  In  this 
way  it  was  that  the  faith  had  ever  some  to  witness 
for  it  in  that  land.  But  the  Church,  even  with  these 
seeds  of  truth  within  her  breast — these  germs  of 
future  purity  and  life — like  the  PILGRIMS  in  their 
Progress  to  the  Celestial  City,  slumbered  on  the 
enchanted  ground.  For  a  time,  she  bowed  to  the 
witchery  of  that  spell  which  Rome  had  cast  over  her, 
and  suffered  her  senses  to  be  overpowered  by  the 
incantations  of  that  oppressor  who  had  led  her  into 

*  It  would  be  easy  to  show,  that  during  this  whole  period  there 
were  leading  men  in  the  English  Church  who  made  bold  stand  not 
only  against  the  usurpations,  but  also  against  the  corruptions  of  the 
Romish  Church.  Even  Archbishop  Dunstan,  in  many  things  subser- 
vient to  the  Pope,  did  not  hesitate  to  set  at  defiance  the  Papal 
mandate,  when  he  deemed  it  unjust  or  improper,  A.  D.  961.  And 
Alfric  Pultock,  Archbishop  of  York,  from  1023  to  1050,  openly 
impugned  the  doctrine  of  transubstantiation.  In  his  '  Sermon  to  be 
spoken  to  the  people  at  Easter,  before  they  receive  the  holy  housel,' 
(the  communion,)  he  teaches  doctrines  that  would  now  be  considered 
orthodox  by  sound  theologians.  In  the  next  century,  Gilbert  Foliath 
consecrated  Bishop  of  Hereford  1 148,  translated  to  London  1163,  died 
1 187,  set  at  defiance  the  Papal  authority,  and  though  twice  excom- 
municated by  the  Pope,  paid  no  regard  to  the  thunders  of  the  Vatican. 
Cotemporary  with  Foliath,  was  Ormin  the  poet,  whose  works  present 
us  with  the  purest  English,  and  the  purest  doctrines  of  that  age.  The 
next  century  was  rendered  famous  by  Robert  Grostete,  or  Greathead, 
Bishop  of  Lincoln,  from  1234  to  1258.  In  1247,  a  demand  was  made 
by  tlie  Pope  for  6000  marks,  (about  £50,000,)  and  he  had  the  courage 
to  refuse  to  levy  it  until  he  had  the  sense  of  the  nation  upon  it.  He 
visited  Rome,  and  protested  against  its  corruptions,  before  the  Pope 
and  Cardinals.  After  his  return,  the  Pope  again  tried  his  courage  by 
collating  an  Italian  youth  to  a  vacant  Canonry  in  the  Cathedral  of 
Lincoln.  But  Grostete  was  inflexible.  He  set  at  nought  the  Pope's 
ccmmands,  for  which  he  was  excommunicated.  But  the  thunderbolt 
fell  harmless  at  his  feet,  and  he  died  in  peaceful  possession  of  his  See. 
Other  examples  of  a  similar  nature  occur,  but  these  are  amply  suffi- 
cient to  show  that  many  of  the  clergy  asjerted  that  in  their  writings 
to  which  they  assented  in  their  legislative  capacities. — Chapui's  Frim. 
Church,  p.  380. 


HISTORY    OF    OUR    LITURGY.  163 

captivity.  But  at  length  the  hour  of  her  redemption 
came,  and  a  voice  broke  in  upon  her,  crying — "  Sleep 
no  more."  Then  her  dream  was  dispelled,  and 
shaking  from  her  garments  the  dust  of  ages,  she  came 
forth  in  her  ancient  strength.  She  had  discerned  a 
vision  of  the  Truth,  which,  while  it  made  her  free, 
enabled  her  also  to  proclaim  spiritual  freedom  to  the 
world. 

You  perceive,  then,  how  groundless  is  the  charge 
that  the  Church  of  England,  and  of  course  our  own 
Church,  are  only  seceders  from  that  of  Rome.  The 
whole  statement  of  the  case  is  briefly  this — that  the 
Italian  Bishops  invaded  the  British  branch  of  the 
Catholic  or  Universal  Church,  which,  after  a  long 
struggle,  was  for  a  time  reduced  to  submission ;  yet 
ultimately  her  rights  were  recovered,  and  this  foreign 
jurisdiction  thrown  off.  Successive  councils  of  the 
Church  had  declared  the  independence  of  each  par- 
ticular branch,  and  the  Bishops  of  Rome  therefore 
had  no  authority  in  that  island.  The  sixth  canon  of 
the  Council  of  Nice,  A.  D.  325,  commanded  that  the 
"  ancient  customs  should  prevail,"  and  the  "  privileges 
of  Churches  be  preserved."  In  like  manner,  the 
Council  of  Ephesus,  A.  D.  430,  forbade  Bishops  to 
assume  jurisdiction  over  provinces  which  had  not 
from  the  beginning  been  subject  to  their  predeces- 
sors. It  enjoined  on  all  who  might  have  taken  such 
provinces,  an  immediate  restitution,  and  decreed 
"  that  every  province  should  preserve  pure  and  invio- 
late the  rights  which  it  had  from  the  beginning; 
that  " — as  the  Council  added,  with  a  degree  of  pro- 
phetic wisdom — "  the  Canons  of  the  Fathers  may 
not  be  transgressed,  nor  the  pride  of  wo7'ldly  domiiiioti 


l64  HISTORY   OF    OUR  LITURGY. 

enter,  under  the  pretence  of  the  sacred  ministry,"* 
At  that  time,  the  Church  in  Britain  was  independent 
of  the  Roman  patriarch  ;  what  right,  then,  had  he 
afterwards  to  assume  and  enforce  jurisdiction  ?  Mr. 
Dodsworth  has  thus  briefly  summed  up  the  whole 
question — "  I  repeat,  what  is  so  essential  in  these 
days  for  every  Churchman  to  remember,  that  the 
Church  of  England  never  separated  from 
TPHi  Church  of  Rome.  It  was  originally  an  in- 
dependent Church,  founded — not  by  emissaries  from 
Rome  —  but  at  a  period  not  far  removed  from 
Apostolic  times,  and  perhaps  even  by  an  Apostle 
himself  ...  It  was  not  till  the  period  of  the  Conquest, 
in  the  middle  of  the  eleventh  century,  that  Rome 
assumed  anything  like  an  ascendancy  over  our  Church, 
and  then  it  was  not  without  a  long  and  arduous 
struggle  that  she  established  it.  So  that  the  real 
fact  of  the  case  is  this,  that  out  of  EIGHTEEN  CENTU- 
RIES, during  which  the  Church  of  England  has 
existed,  somewhat  less  than  FOUR  CENTURIES  AND 
A  HALF  were  passed  under  the  usurped  domination 
of  the  See  of  Rome :  so  great  is  the  absurdity,  and 
palpable  ignorance  of  historical  facts,  evinced  by 
those  who  represent  the  Church  of  England,  as  a 
separated  branch  from  the  Romish  communion."t 

•  Palmer's  Orig.  Liturgicae,  v.  ii.  p.  263. 

t  Discourses  on  Romanism  and  Dissent,  p.  168.  Dr.  Hook,  of 
Leeds,  Chaplain  to  the  Queen,  in  a  sermon  preached  in  the  Chapel 
Royal,  also  thus  finely  illustrates  this  point — "  About  two  years  ago 
the  very  Chapel  in  which  we  are  now  assembled,  was  repaired,  cer- 
tain disfigurements  removed,  certain  improvements  made  ;  would  it 
not  be  absurd  on  that  account  to  contend  that  it  is  no  longer  the  Chapel 
Royal  ?  Would  it  not  be  still  more  absurd  if  some  one  were  to  build  a 
new  Chapel  in  the  neighborhood,  imitating  closely  what  this  Chapel  was 
five  years  ago,  and  carefully  piling  up   all  the  dust  and  rubbish  which 


HISTORY  OF  OUR  LITURGY.  I65 

Now,  among  the  changes  which  took  place  during 
this  long  period  of  bondage,  the  ancient  and  primi- 
tive Liturgy  of  the  English  Church  suffered  also  ;  for 
the  overshadowing  power  of  Rome  was  too  great  to 
allow  the  continuance  in  use  of  this  precious  legacy 
from  former  ages.  It  necessarily  became  more  and 
more  assimilated  to  that  of  Italy.  The  tide  of  Romish 
priests  was  poured  in  from  the  continent  —  their 
Bishops  gradually  usurped  the  Sees  of  the  English 
prelates — foreign  rites  and  ceremonies  were  taught 
to  the  people — new  doctrines,  such  as  the  worship  of 
saints,  the  adoration  of  the  Cross,  transubstantiation, 
indulgences,  and  purgatory,  were  introduced — and 
thus  these  corruptions,  which  their  invaders  had 
brought  with  them,  were  gradually  ingrafted  upon 
the  Ritual  of  tlie  British  Church.  At  length  that 
uniformity  was  produced  which  it  is  ever  the  object 
of  Rome  to  attain,  and  so  the  Liturgy  remained 
until  the  reign  of  Henry  VIII. 

At  this  time  the  spirit  of  reformation  commenced 
in  England,  and  the  Church,  having  first  thrown  off 
her  allegiance  to  the  Romish  See,  proceeded  to  purify 

was  at  that  time  swept  from  hence,  and  then  pronounce  that,  not  this,  to 
be  the  ancient  Chapel  of  the  Sovereigns  of  England  ?  The  absurdity  is  at 
once  apparent ;  but  this  is  precisely  what  has  been  done  by  the  Roman 
Catholic  or  Papist.  The  present  Church  of  England  is  the  old  Catho- 
lic Church  of  England,  reformed  in  the  reigns  of  Henry,  Edward,  and 
Elizabeth,  of  certain  superstitious  errors  ;  it  is  the  same  Church  which 
came  down  from  our  British  and  Saxon  ancestors,  and,  as  such,  it 
possesses  its  original  endowments,  which  were  never,  as  ignorant 
persons  foolishly  suppose,  taken  from  one  Church  and  given  to 
another.  The  Church  remained  the  same  aft^r  it  was  reformed  as 
it  was  before,  just  as  a  man  remains  the  same  man  after  he  has 
washed  his  face,  as  he  was  before  ;  just  as  Naaman,  the  leper, 
remained  the  same  Naaman  after  he  was  cured  of  his  leprosy,  as  he 
was  l^efore." 


1 66  HISTORY    OF   OUR    LITURGY. 

her  service,  and  restore  it  to  its  ancient  form.*  This, 
however,  was  not  done  hastily.  Time  was  taken, 
and  each  step  made  the  subject  of  careful  delibera- 
tion, and  profound  learning  called  in  to  aid,  and  a 
thorough  investigation  of  the  past  resorted  to,  during 
every  stage  of  the  compilation.  The  questions  were 
often  asked — "  What  is  to  be  retained,  because  it  is 
Scriptural,  Primitive,  and  Catholic  ?"  and — "  What  is 
to  be  stricken  out,  because  it  is  modern  and  Romish  ?" 
Their  own  ancient  existing  missals,  the  "  Uses,"  and 
other  ritual  books  of  York,  Sarum,  Hereford,  Bangor, 
and  Lincoln,t  were  sought  out,  and  also  the  Primi- 
tive Oriental  forms  of  worship  examined,  and  from 
these  materials,  the  service  was  restored  to  its  origi- 

*  It  may  be  well  here  to  notice  a  usual  objection,  that  Henry  VIII. 
commenced  the  Reformation  and  separated  from  Rome,  to  serve  his 
own  licentious  passions.  But  has  this  anything  to  do  with  the  ques- 
tion ?  Does  not  God  often  make  "  the  wrath  of  man  to  praise  Him  ?" 
In  this  instance  we  behold  Him  bringing  good  out  of  evil,  raising  up 
holy  men  to  complete  in  purity  what  was  begun  in  passion,  and  thus 
even  the  vices  of  an  unholy  king  were  made  to  minister  to  the  success 
of  His  Church.  The  truth  of  a  cause,  and  the  personal  characters  of 
its  promoters,  are  very  different  considerations.  Some  of  the  Jewish 
kings,  whom  God  employed  as  reformers,  to  restore  His  worship — 
Jehu,  for  example  (2  Kings  x.  29) — were  by  no  means  saints.  Con- 
stantine  established  Christianity  in  the  Roman  Empire,  and  Napoleon 
restored  it  in  France.  Yet  who  cavils  at  either  of  these  great  changes, 
on  account  of  the  want  of  personal  sanctity  in  their  authors  ? 

t  These  were,  in  the  main,  transcripts  of  the  Sacramentary  of  St. 
Gregory  of  the  sixth  century,  and  of  course  fi-ee  from  those  corruptions 
of  the  Romish  Church  which  were  most  objectionable,  as  they  were 
prior  to  the  adoption  of  these  errors.  As  each  Bishop  had  the  power 
of  altering  the  particular  Liturgy  of  his  own  Church,  in  process  of 
time  different  customs  arose,  and  several  became  so  established  as  to 
receive  the  names  of  their  respective  Churches.  Thus  gradually  the 
"  Uses,"  or  "  Customs  "  of  York,  Sarum,  Hereford,  &c.,  came  to  be 
distinguished  from  each  other. — (Falmer^s  Orig.  Lit.,  v.  i,  p.  186.) 
An  examination  of  these  Uses  will  therefore  often  show  the  faith  of 
the  English  Church  in  the  seventh  century. 


HISTORY  OF   OUR    LITURGY.  1 67 

nal  purity,  and  that  Ritual  composed  which  is  now 
our  Book  of  Common  Prayer.  More  than  120  years, 
however,  passed — from  the  year  1537,  in  the  reign 
of  Henry  VIIL,  to  the  year  1662,  in  the  reign  of 
Charles  II. — while  this  church  was  going  through  its 
successive  steps,  and  gradually  maturing  to  the  form 
in  which  we  now  have  it.  Twice  indeed  it  was  in- 
terrupted— once  by  the  reign  of  Queen  Mary,  who 
of  course  endeavored  to  restore  the  Roman  Ritual, 
and  again  by  the  rule  of  the  Puritans,  when  all  an- 
cient forms  were  rejected  as  the  remains  of  Popery — 
but  during  the  remainder  of  this  period,  it  was  a 
subject  of  frequent  study  with  the  Prelates  of  the 
English  Church,  assisted  by  the  learned  of  the  land, 
to  return  to  a  purer  mode  of  worship. 

The  first  step  was  in  the  reign  of  Henry  VIIL, 
when  a  committee,  appointed  for  that  purpose,  trans- 
lated certain  portions  of  the  Service  into  English, 
which  were  published  under  the  title  of  "  The  Insti- 
tution of  a  Christian  Man."  It  was  known  also  by 
the  name  of  "The  Bishop's  Book."  Six  years  after- 
wards, this  was  revised  and  republished  under  the 
title  of  "A  necessary  Doctrine  and  Erudition  for  any 
Christian  Man."  Again,  in  1545,  the  King's  Primer 
was  published.* 

*  These  works  have  all  been  reprinted  in  England  during  the  last 
few  years.  To  show  the  gradual  progress  of  feeling  during  the  reign 
of  Henry  VIIL  we  will  give  the  contents  of  these  three  Books. 

I.    The  InstittUion  of  a  Christian  Man. 

"This  book,  called  The  Institution  of  a  Christian  Man,  containeth 
four  special  parts,  whereof 

The  first  part  containeth  the  Exposition  of  the  Creed,  called  the 
Apostles'  Creed. 

The  second  part  containeth  the  Exposition  or  Declaration  of  the 


l68  HISTORY   OF   OUR    LITURGY. 

In  the  reign  of  Edward  VL,  when  the  ancient  cus- 
tom of  administering  the  Communion  in  both  kinds 
was  restored,  it  was  of  course  found  necessary  to  have 
a  Service  giving  the  true  view  of  this  Sacrament. 
The  King  therefore  appointed  "  certain  Bishops  and 
other  learned  Divines,  to  draw  an  office  in  Enghsh  to 
be  used  for  that  purpose;  which  being  finished,  was 
called,  The  Comnmniony^  In  May,  1548,  the 
greatest  step  in  this  series  of  changes  was  taken. 
The  same  Bishops  and  Divines  were  again  selected 
by  the  King  "  to  draw  up  a  general  public  office  in 

Seven  Sacraments,  viz.,  Matrimony,  Baptism,  Confirmation,  Penance, 
Holy  Eucharist,  Orders,  Extreme  Unction. 

The  third  part  containeth  the  Exposition  of  the  Ten  Commandments. 

The  fourth  part  containeth  the  Exposition  of  the  Pater  Noster  and 
the  Ave,  with  the  Articles  of  Justification  and  Purgatory." 

II.  A  Necessary  Doctrine  and  Erudition  for  any  Christian  Man. 
The  Declaration  of  Faith. 

The  Articles  of  our  Belief,  called  the  Creed. 

The  Seven  Sacraments. 

The  Ten  Commandments  of  Almighty  God. 

Our  Lord's  Prayer,  called  the  Pater  Noster. 

The  Salutation  of  the  Angel,  called  the  Ave  Maria. 

An  Article  of  Free  Will. 

An  Article  of  Justification. 

An  Article  of  Good  Works. 

Of  prayer  for  souls  departed. 

III.  The  Primer,  set  forth  by  the  King's  Majesty,  and  his  Clergy, 
to  be  taught,  learned,  and  read;  and  none  other  to  be  used  throughout 
all  his  dominions,  1545- 

The  Calendar.  The  Seven  Psalms. 

The  King's  Highness  Injunction.  The  Litany. 

The  Prayer  of  our  Lord.  TJie  Dirge. 

The  Salutation  of  the  Angel.  The  Commendations. 

The  Creed,  or  Articles  of  Faith.  The  Psalms  of  the  Passions. 

The  Ten  Commandments.  The  passion  of  our  Lord. 

The  Matins.  Certain  godly  prayers  for  sun- 
The  Even  Song.  dry  purposes. 

The  Compline. 

*  Strype's  Mem.  Eccles.  v.  ii.  part.  i.  p.  96. 


HISTORY   OF    OUR    LITURGY.  1 69 

English,  in  the  room  of  the  Latin  mass-book."  This 
having  been  done,  and  the  whole  Liturgy  with  its 
public  offices  having  been  compiled,  it  was  confirmed 
by  Parliament,  in  the  latter  end  of  the  same  year,  and 
set  forth  under  the  title  of  "  The  Book  of  Common 
Prayer  and  Administration  of  the  Sacraments,  and 
other  Rites  and  Ceremonies  of  the  Church  of 
England."  Upon  this  Strype  remarks — "  The  rule 
they  went  by  in  this  work  was,  the  having  an  eye 
and  respect  unto  the  most  sincere  and  pure  Christian 
religion  taught  by  the  Holy  Scriptures,  and  also  to 

the  usage  of  the  Primitive  Church As  for 

the  work  itself,  as  it  is  said  to  be  done  by  one  uni- 
form agreement,  so  also  '  by  the  aid  of  the  Holy 
Ghost,'  such  was  the  high  and  venerable  esteem  then 
hadofit.""^'  A  few  sHght  alterations  having  been 
made  in  1552,  together  with  some  useful  additions, 
such  as  the  introductory  Sentences,  Exhortations, 
Confession  and  Absolution,  and  the  forms  for  ordina- 
tion of  Bishops,  Priests,  and  Deacons,  it  was  again 
confirmed  by  Parliament,  and  this  is  the  book  known 
by  the  name  of  "  The  Second  Book  of  Edward  VL" 

Under  Elizabeth  and  James  I.,  Committees  were 
at  different  times  appointed  to  see  what  further  re- 
vision of  the  Prayer  Book  was  expedient.  The 
changes  however  were  trifling,  generally  referring 
merely  to  the  form  of  expression,  except  the  insertion 
of  some  prayers  for  Thanksgiving,  and  a  few  Ques- 
tions and  Answers  in  the  Catechism. 

At  last,  in  the  reign  of  Charles  H.,  the  final  alter- 
ations were  made.  Some  of  the  Collects  were 
remodelled,    the    Epistles  and    Gospels   were   taken 

*  Ibid.  p.  135. 


I70  HISTORY  OF    OUR    LITURGY. 

from  King  James's  translation  of  the  Bible,  the  office 
for  the  Baptism  of  adults,  together  with  a  few  prayers 
for  particular  occasions,  were  added,  and  thus  the 
Prayer  Book  was  finally  adopted  as  it  is  now  used  by 
the  Church  in  England. 

Thus  it  is  that  we  have  given  the  History  of  our 
Liturgy,  from  its  rise  in  primitive  times  down  to  its 
present  form  in  our  Mother  Church  abroad.  You 
perceive  therefore  that  it  is  no  modern  production, 
nor  is  it  a  set  of  forms  which  grew  up  amid  the 
corruptions  of  the  Middle  Ages.*  It  is  a  Ritual 
which,  in  all  its  principal  features,  can  be  traced  back 
to  the  Apostolic  age.  And  so  close  is  this  resem- 
blance, that  in  very  many  parts  it  extends  even  to 
the  expressions  and  the  words. 

To  effect  this  was  the  avowed  object  of  the  English 
Reformers.  Unlike  those  on  the  Continent,  they 
made  no  attempt  to  found  a  new  Church,  nor  did 
they  desire  t-o  introduce  a  new  order  of  worship. 
They  knew  that  "the  old  was  better,"  and  therefore 
their  work  was  simply  one  of  Restoration.     Thus,  in 

•  Ingram,  in  his  True  Character  of  the  Church  of  England,  thus 
shows  that  Qur  Prayer  Book  is  older  than  the  Roman  Missal  now 
used — "  Oar  Common  Prayer  was  compiled  in  1548,  received  a  re- 
vision in  1552,  and  was  established  in  its  present  form  in  1569. 
Whereas  the  Roman  Missal  was  drawn  up  by  certain  fathers  chosen 
for  that  purpose  towards  the  close  of  the  Council  of  Trent,  in  1562, 
and  was  not  sanctioned  and  promulgated  until  1570,  by  a  bull  of 
Pope  Pius  V.  bearing  date  the  12th  of  January  in  that  year.  It  is 
therefore  impossible  that  the  later  Roman  could  have  been  the  source 
whence  the  earlier  English  Ritual  was  derived.  The  Reformed 
Church  of  England  might,  with  much  greater  appearance  of  reason, 
charge  the  Italian  Church  with  having  copied  from  her  Liturgy  all 
that  is  Scriptural  and  Primitive  in  the  Roman  Mass  Book.  Put  the 
fact  is,  both  Churches  had  one  common  fountain  from  which  to  draw  ; 
namely,  Scripture  and  Primitive  usage.  The  Church  of  Rome  chose 
to  corrupt  the  pure  waters  of  this  fountain." — p.  95. 


HISTORY  OF    OUR  LITURGY.  171 

the  answer  of  the  Council  to  the  Princess  Mary, 
afterwards  Queen,  when  she  wished  Mass  performed 
in  her  house,   they  say — "  That  the  Christian   faith 

professed  is  the  same  in  substance  as  before 

that  the  EngHsh  Reformation  had  recovered  tlie 
worship  to  the  directions  of  Scripture,  and  the  usage 
of  the  Primitive  Chtirch."*  And  Bishop  ColHer 
adds  — "  That  part  of  the  letter  which  relates  to 
religion,  was  penned  in  all  likelihood  by  Cranmer  and 
Ridley,  who  were  then  of  the  Privy  Council."  When 
again,  in  the  reign  of  Queen  Mary,  Archbishop 
Cranmer  drew  up  "  A  Manifesto  in  Defence  of  the 
Reformation,"  he  has  the  same  appeal  to  antiquity. 
He  says,  "  And  with  the  Queen's  leave  he  offers  to 
justify  the  English  Communion  Service,  both  from 
the  authority  of  the  Scriptures,  and  the  practice  of  the 
Primitive  ChnrcJi.  And  on  the  other  side,  that  the 
Mass  is  not  only  without  foundation  in  both  these 
respects,  but  likewise  discovers  a  plain  contradiction  to 

antiquity He  will  maintain  the  Reformation 

made  in  the  late  reign,  with  respect  to  Doctrine, 
Discipline,  and  Worship,  to  be  more  orthodox  and 
defensible,  more  agreeable  to  the  true  standard,  and 
Primitive  Plan,  than  the  belief  and  practice  of  the 
Church  of  Rome."t  In  the  same  way,  Queen  Eliza- 
beth,  in  reply  to  the  Roman  Catholic  Princes  on  the 
Continent,  who  desired  favor  to  be  shown  to  the 
Romish  Bishops,  gives  as  a  reason  why  they  should 
conform  to  the  established  Church,  that  "  there  was 
no  new  faith  propagated  in  England ;  no  new  re- 
ligion set  up,  but  that  which  was  commanded  by  our 
Saviour,  practiced  by  the  Primitive  Chiirch,  and  ap- 

*  Collier's  Eccl.  Hist.  v.  ii.  p.  311.  f  Ibid.  p.  347. 


172  HISTORY  OF  OUR    LITURGY. 

proved  by  the  Fathers  of  the  best  antiquity.'"^  When 
therefore  the  Prayer  Book  was  pubhshed  in  its 
present  form,  it  was  recommended  to  the  Clergy  and 
Laity  in  these  words — "  Here  you  have  an  order  of 
Prayer,  and  for  the  reading  of  Scripture,  much  agree- 
able to  the  mind  and  purposes  of  the  old  fat  hers."  \  In 
the  "  Act  of  Uniformity,"  the  Parliament  of  England 
declared  that  thus  they  received  it,  and  it  was 
authorized  as  "  A  very  godly  Book,  agreeable  to  the 
word  of  God  and  the  Primitive  Church,  very  com- 
fortable to  all  good  people,  desiring  to  live  in 
Christian  conversation.":}: 

We  have  thus  brought  before  you  the  history  of 
our  Liturgy,  through  all  ages,  from  Primitive  times 
until  it  assumed  its  present  form,  that  you  may  see 
how  much  it  retains  the  spirit  and  even  the  words 
derived  from  the  days  of  ancient  purity.  To  impress 
this  however  still  more — to  show  how  fully  we  have 
the  sanction  of  antiquity  for  our  manner  of  worship — 
we  will  briefly  take  up  the  principal  parts  of  our 
Ritual,  and  state  their  derivation. 

With  respect  to  the  Communion  Service,  we 
showed  in  the  last  Lecture,  when  referring  to  the 
four  Original  Liturgies,  how  entirely  our  form  for 
the  administration  of  this  solemn  Sacrament  is  taken 
from  them.  It  was  the  object  of  the  compilers  of  our 
Prayer  Book — says  Wheatley — "  out  of  them  all  to 
extract  an  office  for  themselves ;  and  which  indeed 
they  performed  with  so  exact  a  judgment  and  happy 
success,  that  it  is  hard  to  determine,  whether  they 
more  endeavored  the  advancement    of   doctrine,  or 

*  Ibid.  p.  346. 

t  Preface  to  the  Prayer  Book.       {  Collier's  Eccl.  Hist.  v.  ii.  p.  320. 


HISTORY    OF    OUR    LITURGY.  1 73 

the  imitation  of  pure  antiquity."*  For  example,  all 
these  ancient  Liturgies  have  a  prayer  answering  in 
substance  to  ours,  "  For  the  whole  state  of  Christ's 
Church  Militant."  All  contain  that  portion  begin- 
ning, "  Lift  up  your  hearts,"  with  the  responses 
which  follow,  as  well  as  that  noble  anthem,  "  There- 
fore with  angels  and  archangels."  In  each  one  of 
them  also  we  find  the  commemoration  of  our  Lord's 
words — the  Breaking  of  Bread — the  Oblation — the 
Prayer  of  Consecration — the  admirjistration  of  the 
Elements — and  the  Lord's  Prayer. 

Other  parts  of  this  service,  although  not  taken  from 
these  four  Primitive  Liturgies,  are  still  of  great 
antiquity.  Thus,  the  Offertory  has  been  received  in 
the  English  Church  since  the  end  of  the  sixth  century. 
It  is  found  indeed  in  Rituals  of  that  period,  although 
it  may  have  been  used  long  before,  f  The  ExJiorta- 
tion  also  has  its  parallel  in  the  ancient  Liturgies,  In 
that  of  Antioch  particularly,  which  was  used  for  a 
great  length  of  time  by  the  Syrian  Monophosites, 
there  is  a  similar  address  from  the  deacon  to  the 
people,  which  in  its  position  in  the  service  corresponds 
with  our  Exhortation.  This,  if  not  of  greater  antiquity 
than  the  separation  of  the  Orthodox  and  Monopho- 
sites in  A.  D.  451,  can  not  be  much  later  than  that 
event. t  A  form  of  Confession  was  common  in  the 
ancient  Churches,  and  in  the  Liturgy  of  Jerusalem  it 
occupies  exactly  this  place  in  the  service.  There  is 
also  extant  a  Sacramentacry  of  the  time  of  Charle- 
magne, which  contains  one  in  substance  similar  to  our 
own  §     The  same  antiquity  may  be  claimed  for  the 

*  On  Common  Prayer,  p.  274.         f  Palmer's  Orig.  Lit.  v.  ii.  p.  73. 
X  Palmer's  Orig.  Lit.  v.  ii.  p.  100.  §  Ibid.  p.  106. 


174  HISTORY    OF    OUR  LITURGY. 

Absolution,  which  follows.  The  Thanksgiving  after 
Communion  may  be  traced  in  several  early  Liturgies, 
particularly  that  of  Caesarea,  which  is  more  than 
1500  year  old,  that  of  Antioch,  and  the  Alexandrian 
Liturgy  of  Basil.*  The  date  of  the  Gloria  in  Excelsis 
has  never  been  accurately  fixed.  By  some  it  has 
been  ascribed  to  Telesphorus,  Bishop  of  Rome,  A.  D. 
150;  by  others  to  Hilary,  Bishop  of  Poictiers  in  the 
fourth  century.  We  know,  however,  that  it  is  more 
than  1500  years  old  in  the  Eastern  Church,  and  the 
Church  of  England  has  used  it  either  at  the  begin- 
ning or  end  of  the  Liturgy  for  above  1200  years.f 
The  Benediction  is  found  in  some  form  in  all  ancient 
services,  and  the  one  with  which  our  service  con- 
cludes is  a  judicious  enlargement  of  that  which  was 
used  in  the  English  Church  before  the  year  6oo.:{; 

In  the  sam.e  way,  did  our  limits  permit,  we  could 
go  through  the  BAPTISMAL  SERVICE,  and  point  out 
the  origin  of  its  different  parts.  Some  of  these — like 
the  vows  of  renunciation  and  the  profession  of  faith — 
are  of  primitive  antiquity,  while  the  remainder  can 
generally  be  found  in  the  ancient  Manuals  of  Salis- 
bury and  York,  or  in  manuscripts  which  were  used 
more  than  nine  hundred  years  ago.§ 

Let  us  turn  to  the  PSALTER.  The  manner  of 
reading  or  singing  the  Psalms  responsively,  as  we 
now  do,  prevailed  in  very  ancient  times.  We  showed 
in  the  last  Lecture  that  thus  the  Song  of  Moses  was 
used,  after  the  passage  of  the  Red  Sea,  when  the 
people  sang,  "  and  Miriam  and  all  the  women  an- 
swered   them."     In   this    way,    too,    we   know   that 

*  Ibid.  p.  156.     t  Ibid.  p.  159.        %   Ibid.  p.  161. 
§  Ibid.  p.  173. 


HISTORY  OF  OUR   LITURGY.  1 75 

many  of  the  Psalms  of  David  were  chanted  forth  in 
the  service  of  the  Temple.  Such,  for  instance,  was 
Psalm  cxxxvi.,  where  the  first  part  of  each  verse  was 
sung  by  the  Levites,  while  the  chorus,  "For  his 
mercy  endureth  forever,"  was  the  response  of  the 
people. 

'  From  them  the  early  followers  of  our  Lord  inherited 
these  hymns  of  praise,  and  ever  since  the  times  of 
the  Apostles,  the  recitation  of  Psalms  antiphonally 
has  every  where  formed  a  principal  part  of  the 
service  of  the  Church.'^  Thus  the  Roman  Governor, 
Pliny,  A.  D.  no,  states  that  the  Christians  "met  on 
a  certain  stated  day,  and  sung  by  turns,  (inviccm,)  a 
hymn  to  Christ,  as  God."t  St.  Jerome,  in  describing 
the  devotions  of  Christians  in  Egypt,  says,  "  then  the 
Psalms  are  sung,  and  the  Scriptures  are  read;"  and 
thus  Cassian  represents  it,  that  the  Psalms  were  used 
before  the   Lessons.:]:      In  the  same  way,   St.   Basil 

*  Thus  St.  Chrysostom  says — "  Christians  exercise  themselves  in 
David's  Psalms  oftener  than  iu  any  part  of  the  Old  or  New  Testament. 
Moses,  the  great  lawgiver,  who  saw  God  face  to  face,  and  wrote  of  the 
creation  of  the  world,  is  scarcely  read  through  once  a  year.  The  Holy 
Gospels,  where  Christ's  miracles  are  preached,  where  God  converses 
with  man,  where  devils  are  cast  out,  lepers  are  cleansed,  and  the 
blind  restored  to  sight,  where  death  is  destroyed,  where  is  the  food 
of  immortality,  the  Holy  Sacraments,  the  words  of  life,  holy  precepts, 
precious  promises  ;  these  we  read  over  once  or  twice  a  week.  What 
shall  I  say  of  blessed  Paul,  the  preacher  of  Christ  ?  His  Epistles  we 
read  twice  in  the  week.  We  get  them  not  by  heart,  but  attend  to 
them  while  they  are  reading.  But  as  to  David's  Psalms,  the  grace  of 
the  Holy  Spirit  has  so  ordered  it,  that  they  are  repeated  night  and 
day.  In  the  vigils  of  the  Church,  the  first,  the  midst,  the  last,  are 
David's  Psalms.  In  the  morning,  David's  Psalms  are  sought  for,  and 
the  first,  the  midst,  and  the  last,  is  David.  At  funeral  solemnities, 
the  first,  the  midst,  and  the  last,  is  David.  In  private  houses,  the 
first,  the  midst,  and  the  last,  is  David.  Many  that  know  not  a  letter 
can  say  David's  Psalms  by  heart." — Horn.  vi.  de  Poen. 

t  Pliny,  Ep.  97.         {  Bingham,  Orig.  Eccles.  lib.  xiv.  c.  i.  sect.  i. 


176  HISTORY  OF    OUR    LITURGY. 

tells  US,  that  this  part  of  the  service  was  performed  in 
his  day,  alternately.  "  After  the  confession,  the 
people  rise  from  prayer,  and  proceed  to  Psalmody, 
dividing  themselves  into  two  parts,  and  singing  by 
turns."* 

The  Psalms,  too,  were  always  read  or  sung,  as  now 
among  us,  standing.  Thus  Cassian,  speaking  of  the 
Egyptian  Christians,  says,  that  when  "  by  reason  of 
their  continual  fastings  and  labor  day  and  night,  they 
were   unable    to    stand    all    the    time,    while   twelve 

Psalms  were  reading yet  at  the  last  Psalm 

they  all  stood  up,  and  repeated  it  alternately,  adding 
the  Gloria  Patri  at  the  end."  And  we  have  also  the 
testimony  of  St.  Augustine,  who  speaks  of  Psalmody 
as  an  act  of  devotion,  which  all  the  people  performed 
standing  in  the  Church. f  Cassian,  it  will  be  remarked, 
in  the  above  quotation,  refers  to  the  Gloria  Patri 
being  added  to  the  last  Psalm.  Such  was  the  custom 
of  the  Eastern  Church.  In  the  Western  Church,  tlie 
practice  was  diiifercnt,  and  it  was  used  at  the  end  of 
every  Psalm.;}: 

Such  is  also  the  antiquity  of  our  rule  of  teading 
Lessons  from  Scripture  in  each  service.  It  was 
derived  from  the  Jewish  Church,  where  the  law  was 
divided  into  sections,  one  of  which  was  read  on  every 
Sabbath  day,  so  that  the  whole  was  completed  in  a 
year ;  and  on  each  of  these  occasions  some  portion 
of  the  prophets  v/as  added  also.§  To  this  St.  James 
referred    when    he    said,    "  Moses    was   read    in    the 

*  Wheatley  on  Common  Prayer,  p.  134. 

t  Binjham,  lib.  xiv.  c.  1.  sect.  14.  %  Ibid.  sect.  8. 

§  Horne'3  InLiocl.  to  Scrip,  v.  iii.  p.  244,  where  the  reader  will  find 
a  table  of  the  different  sections  from  the  Law  and  the  Prophets,  as 
used  by  the  Jews  throughout  the  year. 


HISTORY   OF    OUR    LITURGY.  177 

Synagogue  every  Sabbath  day,"  (Acts  xv.  21,)  and 
in  the  thirteenth  chapter  mention  is  made  of  the 
same  custom,  where  we  are  told  that  St.  Paul  ad- 
dressed the  people  in  the  synagogue,  "  after  the 
reading  of  the  law  and  tlie  prophets."     (v.  15.) 

The  Christian  Church,  therefore,  naturally  con- 
tinued this  admirable  rule,  by  which  week  after  week 
her  members  are  systematically  instructed  in  the 
word  of  God.  Thus,  Justin  Martyr,  in  the  second 
century  says,  "  It  was  the  custom  in  his  time  to  read 
lessons  out  of  the  Prophets  and  Apostles  in  the 
Assembly  of  the  faithful."*  And  Cassian  tells  us — 
"  It  was  the  constant  custom  of  all  Christians  through- 
out Egypt,  to  have  two  lessons,  one  out  of  the  Old 
Testament,  and  another  out  of  the  New,  read  imme- 
diately after  the  Psalms ;  a  practice  so  ancient,  that 
it  cannot  be  known  whether  it  was  founded  upon 
any  human  institution. "f  Tertullian,  at  the  end  of 
the  second  century,  speaks  of  the  reading  of  Scriptures 
in  the  Church,  and  in  one  place  especially,  he  tells  us 
that  the  law  and  the  prophets  were  read  in  Africa 
before  the  Epistles  and  Gospels.:]:  The  early  fathers, 
in  their  sermons  which  have  come  down  to  us,  fre- 
quently allude  to  the  lessons  for  the  day.  Thus  St, 
Basil,  in  one  of  his  Homilies  on  Baptism,  takes  notice 
of  three  of  the  lessons  that  were  read  that  day, 
besides  the  Psalms,  one  of  which  was  from  Isaiah, 
another  from  Acts,  and  a  third  from  Matthew,  §  St, 
Augustine,  in  like  manner,  refers  to  four  lessons 
which  had  been  read  on  a  particular  occasion,  one 

*  Apol.  i.  cap.  87.  t  Wheatley,  p,  141, 

X  Tertull.  de  Praescript,  c.  36, 
§  Bingham,  lib.  xiv.  chap.  3,  sect.  2. 
12 


178  HISTORY    Oh     OUR  LITURGY. 

out  of  Moses,  another  out  of  Isaiah,  a  third  out  of  the 
Gospel,  and  the  last  out  of  the  Epistles.*  There 
were  also  proper  Lessons  selected  for  the  different 
seasons  of  the  Ecclesiastical  year ;  as  during  the 
Festival  of  Easter,  for  four  days  successively  the 
History  of  Christ's  Resurrection  was  read  out  of  the 
four  Gospels,  and  on  the  day  of  His  Passion,  they 
read  the  narrative  of  His  sufferings  as  related  by  St. 
Matthew,  t  You  perceive,  then,  the  great  antiquity 
of  this  portion  of  the  service,  and  how  faithfully,  in 
this  respect,  we  follow  the  example  of  the  early 
Church. 

The  Litany  next  claims  our  attention.  We  can 
trace  this  kind  of  prayer  back  to  the  third  century, 
in  the  Eastern  Churches.  It  was  introduced  into  the 
Western  Church  during  the  fifth  century.  The 
petitions  in  our  Litany  are  of  very  great  antiquity  in 
the  English  Church.  "  Mabillon  has  printed  a  Litany 
of  the  Church  of  England,  written  probably  in  the 
eighth  century,  which  contains  a  large  portion  of  that 
which  we  repeat  at  the  present  day,  and  which  pre- 
serves exactly  the  same  form  of  petition  and  response 
which  is  still  retained.  The  still  more  ancient 
Litanies  of  the  Abbey  of  Fulda,  of  the  Ambrosian 
Missal,  and  of  Gelasius,  Patriarch  of  Rome,  together 
with  the  Diaconica  or  Irenica  of  the  Liturgies  and 
Offices  of  the  Churches  of  Constantinople,  Caesarea, 
Antioch,  Jerusalem,  &c.,  which  all  preserve  the  form 
of  the  Litany  ;  all  these  ancient  formularies  contain 
very  much  the  same  petitions  as  the  English 
Litany.":}: 

Look  now  at  the  COLLECTS  for  each  day.     The 

•  Ibid.       \  Bingham,  sect.  3.       %  Palmer's  Orig.  Lit.  v.  i.  p.  287. 


HISTORY  OF    OUR  LITURGY.  1 79 

origin  of  this  word  is  doubtful,  so  great  is  the 
antiquity  of  its  use.  By  some  Ritualists,  these  pray- 
ers are  said  to  derive  their  name  from  the  priest, 
thus,  as  it  were,  collecting  the  devotions  of  the  peo- 
ple, and  offering  them  at  once.*  By  others,  it  is 
asserted  they  took  their  rise  from  the  collecting  of 
the  people,  as  was  usual  in  the  early  times  of 
Christianity,  on  fast  days,  and  especially  during  a 
season  of  public  calamity,  for  devotion  in  one  of  the 
Churches.  When  the  clergy  and  the  people  had 
Tussembled  at  the  place  appointed,  the  Bishop  or  the 
Priest  who  was  to  officiate,  recited  over  the  collected 
multitude  a  short  prayer,  which  from  the  circumstance, 
was  denominated  the  Collect  or  gathering  prayer.f 
We  have  Cassian's  testimony  that  in  his  time — that  is 
in  the  fourth  century — Collects  were  recited  amongst 
the  Psalms  and  lessons  of  morning  and  evening 
prayer  by  the  Egyptians  ;  and  Athanasius,  in  several 
places,  alludes  to  the  existence  of  the  same  practice 
in  his  time.:}:  It  has  been  thought  by  some  writers 
on  this  subject,  that  the  Collects  were  framed  by  St. 
Jerome.§  They  were  certainly  arranged  by  Gelasius, 
Patriarch  of  Rome,  in  A.  D.  494,  and  afterwards  by 
Gregory  the  Great,  A.  D.  590,  in  whose  Sacramentary 
many  of  them  are  now  found.  As  he,  however,  only 
collected  them,  they  are  much  older  than  his  day. 
Yet  it  will  be  perceived,  that  even  this  revision  of 
them  dates  back  more  than  1200  years.ll 

*  Bingham's  Orig.  Eccles.  lib.  xix.  ch.  i,  sect.  4. 
t  Rock's  Hierurgia,  vol.  i.  p.  91. 
X  Palmer's  Orig.  Lit.  v.  i.  p,  310. 
§  Wheatley,  p.  212, 

II  As  it  may  be  mteresting  to  Churchmen  to  see  the  date  of  each 
Collect,  and  the  changes  through  which  it  has  passed,  we  have  copied 


I  So 


HISTORY  OF  OUR    LITURGY. 


Let  US  now  examine  the  selection  of  the  Epistle 
and  Gospel  for  each  day,  which  follow  these  collects, 

the  following  tables  from  Sh:pherd's  Elucidation  of  ih:  Prayer  of  the 
Church  of  England,  p.  30 1 -5. 

PART    I. 

Consisting  of  such  Collects  as  ware  retainsd from  ancient  Liturgies  at 

the  Reforma/ion. 

Whence  taken. 

the  first 


Collects  for 
4  Sunday  in  Advent. 


St.  John's  Day. 
The  Epiphany. 

1,  2,  and  3,  Sun.  after  Epiph. 

5  Epiphany. 
Septuagesima. 
Sexagesima. 

2,  3,  4,  5  Sunday  in  Lent. 

6  Sunday  in  Lent. 

Good  Friday,  the  three  Collects. 


Easter  Day. 

3  Sunday  after  Easter. 

5  Sunday  after  Easter. 

Ascension  Day. 

Whitsunday. 

I  Sunday  after  Trinity. 


Whence  taken. 

In   some  old    offices  for 
Sunday  in  Advent. 

St.  Greg.  Sacr.  and  Gothic  Liturg. 

St.  Greg.  Sacr. 

The  same,  and  St.  Ambros.  Liturg. 

St.  Greg.  Sacr. 

The  same. 

The  same. 

The  same. 

The  same  ;  but  in  St.  Ambros. 
Liturg.  for  Good  Friday. 

They  are  in  all  offices  with  little 
variation  ;  but  they  are  left  out 
of  the  Breviaries  of  Pius  V.  and 
Clem.  VIII. 

St.Greg.Sacr.  and  a  Collect  almost 
the  same  in  the  Gallic  Liturgy. 

St.  Greg.  Sacr.  St.  Ambros.  Liturg. 

St.  Greg.  Sacr. 

The  same. 

The  same. 

The  same.  This,  in  some  old  Of- 
fices, is  called  the  second  after 
Pentecost  ;  in  others,  the  first 
after  the  octaves  of  Pentacost. 


Are  all  in  St.  Greg.  Sacr. 
The  same. 
The  same. 


The  3,  4,  5,  6,  7,  8,  9,  10,  12,  13, 

14,  15, 16,  17,  20,  21,  22,  23,  24, 

and  25,  after  Trinity. 
The  Purification. 
St.  Michael's  Day. 

The  reader  will  observe  that  the  greater  part  of  this  class  of  Col- 
lects, is  found  in  Gregory's  Sacramentary,  which  was  composed  before 
the  year  6co.  All  of  these,  therefore,  are  at  least  1200  years  old, 
and  many  of  them  are  much  older.  For  Gregory  did  not  originally 
form  the  offices.     He  only  collected  and  improved  them.     To  waive 


HISTORY   OF    OUR    LITURGY. 


ibl 


"  It  is  certain  " — says  Wheatley — "  that  they  were 
very  anciently  appropriated  to  the  days  whereon   we 

all  other  proof  of  this,  we  have  his  own  testimony,  given  in  vindication 
of  his  conduct.  '  I  have  followed,'  says  he,  '  a  practice  common  in  the 
Greek  Church,  and  have  altered  some  old  Collects,  and  added  some 
new  and  useful  ones.'  But  the  generality  of  the  Collects  in  his 
Sacramentary,  he  compiled  from  Liturgies  which  in  his  time  were 
esteemed  ancient. 

PART     II. 
Consisting  of  Collects  taken  from  ancient  models,  but  considerably  al- 
tered and  improved  by  our  Reformers, and  the  Revieiuers  of  the  Liturgy. 
Collects  for        Time  of  Improvement.  How  it  stood  before. 

St.        Stephen's     Beginning   add.  Grant  us,  O  Lord,  to  learn  to  love 

Day.  1662.  our  enemies,  &c. 

4  Sunday    after    End     improved  Grant  to  us  the  health  of  body  and 
Epiph.  1652.  soul,  that  all  those  things  which 

we  suffer  for  sin,  &c. 
4  Sunday    after     Improved   1662.  Who  makest  the  minds  of  all  faith- 
Easter,  ful  people  to  be  of  one  will,  &c. 
Sunday        after     A   little    varied  This  had  been  of  old  the  Collect 


Ascension. 


Sunday 
Trin. 


after 


after 


8  Sunday 

Trin. 
II  Sunday  after 

Trin, 

18  Sunday  after 
Trin. 

19  Sunday  after 
Trin. 

St.  Paul's  Day 


1549.  for   Ascension   Day,    on   which 

our  venerable  Bede  repeated  it, 
as  he  was  dying. 
The    order    in-  Lord,  make  us  to  have  a  perpetual 
verted  1662.  fear  and  love  of  Thy  holy  name, 

for  Thou  never  failest,  &c. 
Beginning     im-  Whose   providence   is   never    de- 
proved    1662.       ceived,  &c. 
Improved   1662.  That  we,  running  to  thy  promises, 
may  be  made  partakers  of  thy 
heavenly  treasures,  &c. 
Improved  1662.  To  avoid  the  infections  of  the  devil, 

&c. 
Improved  1662.  That    the   working  of  thy  mercy 

may  in  all  things,  &c. 
Improved    1559  In  the  Breviaries  a  new  prayer  was 
and  1662.  added,    mentioning    St.    Paul's 

intercession  ;  in  the  year  1549 
the  old  prayer  alone  out  of 
Greg.  Sacr.  was  restored,  which 
had  our  walking  after  his  ex- 
ample only,  which  was  a  little 
varied  in  the  year  1662. 


I82 


HISTORY   OF   OUR    LITURGY. 


now  read  them ;  since  they  were  not  only  of  general 
use  throughout  the  whole  Western  Church,  but  are 

Time  of  Improvement.  How  it  stood  before. 

Improved  1549.  The  Breviaries  ha.i  put  in  a  new 
prayer  about  the  B.  Virgin's  in- 
tercession, which  was  cast  out  in 
1549,  and  the  form  in  St.  Greg. 
Sacr.  restored, 
and     Improved  1662.  As  thou  hast  taught  St.  Philip  and 
the  other  Apostles,  &c. 
Improved  1662.  To  preach  that  which  he  taught, 
&c.,  was  altered  because  there  is 
no  writing  of  his  extant. 
This  Collect  is  no  older  than  the 
Sacramentary  ascribed  to  Alcui- 
nus.     The  old  oflices  have  an- 
other Collect  for  it,  and  call  it 
the  Octave  of  Pentecost. 

PART    III. 
Consisting  of  such  Collects  as  are  composed  anew,  and  substituted  in 
the  place   of  those  which,  containing  either  false  or  superstitious 
doctrines,  were  on  this  account  rejected. 


Collects  for 
The    Annuncia 
tion 


Sts.    Philip 

James. 
St.       Bartholo- 
mew. 

Trinity  Sunday. 


Collects  for 

1  Sunday  in  Advent. 

2  Sunday  in  Advent. 

3  Sunday  in  Advent. 
Christmas  Day. 
Circumcision. 

6  Sunday  after  Epiphany. 


Quinquagesima. 
Ash  Wednesday. 
I  Sunday  in  Lent. 
Easter  Even. 

Easier  Sunday. 

I  Sunday  after  Easter. 


2  Sunday  after  Easter. 
St.  Andrew's  Day. 


Composed  in 
First  Book  of  Edward  VI.,  549. 
The  same  time. 
1662. 

1549- 

The  sn.me  time. 

1662.       Before    this    time     they 

repeated   the    Collect     for    the 

fifth  Sunday. 

1549- 

The  same  time. 

The  same  time. 

1662.  No  Collect  for  it  ever  be- 
fore  then. 

The  first  sentence  (l  Cor.  v.  7) 
was  added  1662. 

1549.  Then  it  was  used  on  Eas- 
ter Tuesday,  and  in  1662  was 
fixed  for  this  Sunday. 

1549- 

1552.  Second  Book  of  Edward  VI. 


HISTORY  OF   OUR    LITURGY.  183 

also   commented   upon   in    the    Homilies  of  several 
ancient  Fathers,  which  are  said  to  have  been  preached 
upon   those    very   days  to  which   these  portions  of 
Scripture  are  now  affixed.     So  that  they  have  most 
of  them  belonged  to  tlie  same  Sundays  and   Holy 
Days  we  now  use  them  on,  for  above    1200  years."* 
We  are  told  by  Mr.  Palmer,  that  in  the  early  ages 
of  the  Church,  tJie  Epistle  was  generally  called   "  the 
Apostle."     In  this  way  St.   Augustine   often   speaks 
of  it,  and  in  the  Sacramentary  of  Gregory  the   Great 
it  is  said,  "the  Apostle  follows,"  meaning  the  Epistle 
of  the  Apostle  is  then  read.     Almost  all  the  lessons 
now  read  as  Epistles,  have  been  used  in  the  Church 
of  England  for  many  ages.     They  appear  in  English 
Liturgies    before  the  invasion  of  William  the    Con- 
queror.    We  know,  indeed,  that  they  are  generally 
as  old  as  the  time  of  Augustine,  A.  D.  595.     In  his 
day  a    Psalm    was    sung   between    the    Epistle    and 
Gospel.     Thus,  in  one  sermon  he  says — "  We  have 
heard  the  Apostle,  we  have  heard  the  Psalm,  we  have 
heard  tJie  Gospel ;  all  the  divine  lessons  agree."     In 
another  sermon  he  says — "  We  have  heard  the  first 
lesson  from  the  Apostle, then  we  have  sung 

Collects  for  Composed  in 

St.  Thomas's  Day. 
St.  Matthias. 
St.  Mark. 
St.  Barnabas. 
St.  John  Baptist. 
St.  Peter. 
St.  James. 
St.  Matthew. 
St.  Luke. 

St.  Simon  and  St.  Jude. 
All  Saints.  J 

*  On  Common  Prayer,  p.  213. 


All  composed  anew  in  1549. 


1 84  HISTORY    OF    OUR    LITURGY. 

a  Psalm,  .  .  .  after  this,  came  the  lesson  from  the 
Gospel ;  these  three  lessons  we  will  discourse  upon, 
as  far  as  time  permits."*  There  is  a  curious  thought 
in  Alcuin — an  English  writer  who  lived  about  A.  D. 
780 — that  this  arrangement  of  the  Church  is  "  not 
without  a  spiritual  meaning.  For,  in  causing  the 
writings  of  God's  envoys  to  be  recited  previous  to 
the  lecture  of  the  Gospel,  the  Church  appears  to 
imitate  the  example  of  Jesus  Christ,  who  deputed 
some  among  his  disciples  to  go  before  him  into  those 
quarters  which  he  was  about  to  honor  with  a  visit,  "f 
You  perceive  in  these  quotations  the  reference 
made  to  the  Gospel  also.  Even  in  the  manner  in 
which  it  is  read,  our  Church  continues  to  follow  the 
example  of  the  early  ages.  It  v/as  a  general  custom 
for  all  the  people  to  stand  up,  and  when  it  was 
announced,  they  uttered  the  ascription  of  praise — 
"  Glory  be  to  Thee,  O  Lord."  Thus  the  author  of 
an  ancient  Homily,  sometimes  ascribed  to  St.  Chry- 
sostom,  asserts — "  When  the  Deacon  goes  about  to 
read  the  Gospel,  we  all  presently  rise  up  and  say, 
'  Glory  be  to  Thee,  O  Lord.'  "|  We  know,  indeed, 
that  this  custom  of  rising  is  certainly  as  old  as  the 
days  of  St.  Chrysostom  ;  for  he  speaks  of  it  in  one 
of  His  Homilies  on  St.  Matthew — "  If  the  letters  of 
a  king  are  read  in  the  theatre  with  great  silence, 
much  more  ought  we  to  compose  ourselves,  and 
stand  tip  with  attentive  ears,  when  the  letters  not  of 
an  earthly  king,  but  of  the  Lord  of  angels  are  read  to 
us."§     In  the  same  way  the  author  of  the  Consti- 

•  Orig.  Lit.  V.  ii.  p.  42-7. 

t  Akuinus  de  Divin.  offic.  (quoted  in  Rock's  Hierurgia,  v.  ii.  p.  95.) 

X  Bang.  Orig.  Eccles.  lib.  xiv.  ch.  3,  sect.  10.       §  Horn.  i.  in  Matt. 


HISTORY  OF    OUR  LITURGY.  1 85 

tutions  says — "When  the  Gospel  is  read  let  the 
Presbyters  and  Deacons  and  all  the  people  stand  with 
profound  silence."* 

These  then,  are  the  principal  parts  of  our  service, 
and  you  perceive  not  only  their  great  antiquity,  but 
also  how  carefully  the  Church  now  adheres  to  the 
rites  and  customs  of  early  days.  From  the  manner 
in  which  our  Liturgy  was  arranged  by  the  English 
reformers,  you  can  see  the  object  they  had  in  view  in 
the  great  work  to  which  they  were  called,  and  the 
spirit  in  which  it  was  accomplished.  They  wished 
simply  to  purify  their  Church  and  Ritual  from  tlie 
corruptions  of  the  Middle  Ages,  and  to  have  them 
both  conformed  in  every  respect  to  the  pattern  of 
primitive  times.  In  this  respect  they  differed  widely 
from  those  on  the  Continent.  There,  antiquity  was 
disregarded — the  Church,  with  her  ministry  and 
Ritual,  entirely  abandoned — and  instead  of  a  Reforma- 
tion, the  result  was  a  Revolution.^  Casaubon,  there- 
fore, paid  but  a  merited  tribute  to  our  Church, 
when  he  wrote — "  Si  me  conjectura  non  fallit,  totius 
reformationis  pars  integerrima  est  in  Anglia ;  ubi,  cum 
studio  veritatis,  viget  stndtnm  antiqnitatis." 

*  Constit.  lib.  ii.  cap.  57. 

t  "  Thus  when  the  infatuate  Council,  named  of  Trent, 

Clogg'd  up  the  Catholic  course  of  the  true  Faith, 

Troubling  the  stream  of  pure  antiquity, 

And  the  wide  channel  in  its  bosom  took 

Crude  novelties,  scarce  known  as  that  of  old  : 

Then  many  a  schism   overleaped  the  banks, 

Genevese,  Lutheran,  Scotch  diversities. 

Our  Church,  though  straiten'd  sore  'tween  craggy  walls, 

Kept  her  true  course,  tmchniging  and  the  same ; 

Known  by  that  ancient  clearness,  pure  and  free. 

With  which  she  sprung  from  'neath  the  throne  of  God." 

Thoughts  on  Past  Years,  p.  274. 


1 86  HISTORY    OF    OUR  LITURGY. 

It  remains  to  say  but  a  ic.\N  words  with  regard  to 
the  difference  between  the  Prayer  Book  as  used  in 
l£ngland  and  in  this  country.  At  the  close  of  that 
revolution  which  politically  separated  us  from  Eng- 
land, the  Church  also  in  this  land  was,  of  course, 
severed  from  that  to  which  she  had  been  "  indebted, 
under  God,  for  her  first  foundation,  and  a  long  con- 
tinuance of  nursing  care  and  protection."*  When, 
therefore,  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  assisted  by 
other  English  prelates,  had  consecrated  three  Bishops 
for  this  country,  that  we  might  have  the  Apostolical 
succession  among  oursclves,t  it  became  necessary 
also  to  make  some  trifling  alterations  in  the  Prayer 
Book,  to  adapt  it  to  the  circumstances  of  the  Church, 
These  changes  were  made,  and  these  only  ;  for,  as  it 
is  expressed  in  the  Preface  to  that  volume — "  This 
Church  is  far  from  intending  to  depart  from  the 
Church  in  England  in  any  essential  point  of  doctrine, 
discipline,  or  worship,  or  further  than  local  circum- 
stances require."  Our  early  Bishops,  looking  to  the 
Church  from  which  their  own  derived  her  existence, 
wished  that  every  one  should  trace  the  Mother's  line- 

*  Preface  to  the  Prayer  Book. 

t  The  Right  Rev.  \Vm.  White,  D.D,,  of  Pennsylvania,  and  the 
Right  Rev.  Sam.  Provoost,  D.D.,  of  New  York,  consecrated  in  the 
Chapel  of  the  Archiepiscopal  Palace  at  Lambeth,  in  England,  on 
Sunday,  Feb.  4th,  1787,  by  the  Most  Rev.  John  Moore,  Archbishop 
of  Canterbury,  assisted  by  tlie  Archbishop  of  York,  and  the  Bishops 
of  Bath  and  Wells,  and  Peterborough.  The  Right  Rev.  James  Madi- 
son, D.D.,  of  Virginia,  consecrated  in  the  same  place,  on  Sunday, 
Sept.  19th,  1790,  by  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  assisted  by  the 
Bishops  of  London  and  Rochester. 

The  Right  Rev.  Samuel  Seabury,  D.D.,  of  Connecticut,  had  been 
previously  consecrated  in  Aberdeen,  Scotland,  Nov.  14th,  1784,  by 
the  Bishop  of  Aberdeen,  with  his  coadjutor,  and  the  Bishop  of  Ross 
and  Moray  assisting. 


HISTORY  OF  OUR  LITURGY.  1 87 

aments  in  the  features  of  the  child.  Thus,  then,  the 
Prayer  Book  was  finally  arranged,  and  so  we  trust  it 
will  remain  through  all  ages  of  our  Church  here, 
until  her  earthly  warfare  is  accomplished,  and  this 
service  gives  place  to  the  anthems  of  Heaven. 

And  now,  in  conclusion,  let  me  ask — have  we  not 
reason  to  bless  God  for  this  "  form  of  sound  words," 
which  has  thus  come  down  to  us  from  a  distant  anti- 
quity ?  May  we  not  say  of  the  Church — "  Her  cloth- 
ing is  of  wrought  gold  ?"  Our  Ritual  contains  not 
the  sentiments  or  thoughts  of  any  one  man— or  even 
any  one  generation  of  men — but  embodies  the  spirit 
and  the  devotion  of  Universal  Catholic  Christendom, 
in  its  earliest,  purest  day.  It  is  tinged  with  no  party 
views.  It  is  not  intended  to  speak  the  language  of 
any  one  small  section  of  believers,  but  it  seeks  to 
bring  us  before  the  throne  of  God  in  the  same  spirit 
with  which  His  children  were  accustomed  to  approach 
Him,  when  warring  sects  were  unknown,  and  but  one 
united  Church  was  spread  everywhere  over  the 
earth.  Oh,  are  there  not,  then,  solemn  recollections 
and  glorious  memories  connected  with  the  Liturgy 
by  which  now  we  worship  ?  Is  it  not  something,  to 
realize  that  in  our  devotions  we  are  not  dependent 
on  the  feelings  of  a  mortal  like  ourselves,  for  the  di- 
rection which  our  thoughts  shall  take,  but  that  the 
prayers  we  utter  bear  the  stamp  and  breathe  the 
spirit  of  Apostolic  days  ?  Does  not  this  Ritual  come 
to  us  with  new  power  when  we  think  that,  age  after 
age,  its  solemn,  elevating  voice  has  been  heard  in 
the  Church — that  it  is  now  what  it  was,  when  Chris- 
tainity  itself,  in  the  dawn  of  early  youth,  was  con- 
tending  even    for   existence  with    a    Pagan    world  ? 


1 88  HISTORY  OF  OUR    LITURGY. 

Yes — when  I  stand  at  this  altar,  to  minister  in  that 
holy  rite  by  which  with  bread  and  wine  we  com- 
memorate our  Lord's  death,  I  remember  that 
seventeen  centuries  ago,  these  emblems  were  conse- 
crated, with  almost  the  same  words,  in  the  distant 
East  where  our  faith  had  its  birth,  and  through 
Northern  Africa,  where  once  hundreds  of  Bishops  sat 
in  the  councils  of  the  Church.  There  also  that 
noble  ascription — "  Therefore  with  angels  and  arch- 
angels, and  with  all  the  company  of  Heaven,  we  laud 
and  magnify  thy  glorious  name  " — was  uplifted  in 
many  a  strange  tongue,  as  men  thus  professed  their 
faith  even  at  the  peril  of  their  lives.  And  now  it 
has  descended  to  us,  as  a  chain  which  binds  us  to 
them  in  holy  fellowship.  The  same  anthems  which 
you  sing,  have  been  sounded  forth  from  ancient  con- 
fessors and  martyrs,  as  they  went  joyfully  to  the 
stake,  and  been  the  last  accents  heard  from  their  lips 
as  the  flames  gathered  around  them.*  Countless 
generations  of  the  saints — the  dead  who  slept  in 
Christ  a  thousand  years  ago — have  worshipped  in 
the  very  prayers  which  now  you  use,  and  had  their 
souls  thus  trained  up  for  Heaven. 

Therefore  it  is  that,  as  each  age  passed  by,  this 
Ritual  has  gone  down  with  a  richer  freight  of  hal- 
lowed associations  and  blessings  to  the  generation 
which  succeeded,  until  we  in  our  turn  have  inherited 

*  "  Their  bodies  were  quickly  wrapped  in  flame  ;  they  shouted 
Te  Deiini  laudmmis.  Soon  their  voices  were  stifled — and  their  ashes 
alone  remained." — Death  of  Esch  and  Voes,  the  first  martyrs  of  the 
Reformation,  at  Brussels,  1 5  25. 

The  venerable  Bede,  as  he  was  dying,  repeated  the  Collect  for 
the  day,  which  was  the  Festival  of  our  Lord's  Ascension. — Malms. 
1.  i.  c.  3. 


HISTORY   OF    OUR    LITURGY.  I89 

it.  We  wish,  therefore,  nothing  better.  We  are 
willing  to  tread  in  the  footsteps  of  the  holy  dead 
who  have  gone  before  us.  We  will  worship  in 
their  words,  and  trust  that  at  the  end  we  shall 
share  in  their  reward.  We  will  feel,  too,  that  the 
noblest  legacy  we  can  leave  to  those  who  shall  come 
after  us,  is  this  form  of  sound  words — so  full — so 
complete,  that  we  may  well  say  in  the  words  of  Dr. 
South — "  There  is  no  prayer  necessary,  that  is  not  in 
the  Liturgy,  but  one,  which  is  this  :  that  God  would 
vouchsafe  to  continue  the  Liturgy  itself,  in  use  and 
honor,  and  veneration,  in  this  Church  forever." 


VI. 

THE  CHURCH'S  VIEW  OF  INFANT  BAPTISM. 

Blest  be  the  Church,  that  watching  o'er  the  needs 
Of  infancy,  provides  a  timely  shower, 
Whose  virtue  changes  to  a  Christian  Flower 
A  growth  from  sinful  nature's  bed  of  weeds  ! 
Fitliest  beneath  the  sacred  roof  proceeds 
The  ministration  ;  while  parental  Love 
Looks  on,  and  grace  descendeth  from  above. 
As  the  high  service  pledges  now,  now  pleads. 

Wordsworth's  Ecclesiastical  Sonnets,  XV. 

Human  language  could  not  frame  a  question  which 
would  appeal  with  greater  force  to  the  parent's  heart 
than  that  simple  inquiry  which  Elisha  addressed  to 
the  woman  of  Shunem — "  Is  it  well  with  the  child  ?"* 
It  is  asking  after  the  welfare  of  one  around  whom 
their  warmest  affections  are  clustering,  with  all  the 
strength  of  a  father's  love,  and  the  undying  steadfast- 
ness of  a  mother's  tenderness.  The  infant,  even  in 
the  first  months  of  its  helpless  innocence,  is  already 
exerting  a  powerful  influence  over  many  hearts. 
How  many  bosoms — alike  of  childhood  and  of  age — 
are  filled  with  its  love !  How  many  countenances, 
as  they  cluster  around  it,  light  up  with  gladness  at 
its  smiles  !  How  does  its  presence  spread  happiness 
through  its  home  !  Thus  early  do  the  threads  of  its 
influence  go  out,  and  entwine  about  the  hearts  of 
those  to  whom  Providence  hath  committed  its  keep- 
ing.    How  powerfully,  then,  do  the  warmest  feelings 

*  2  Kings  iv.  26. 


THE  CHURCH'S  VIEW  OF  INFANT  BAPTISM.      I91 

of  our  nature  respond  at  once  to  the  question — "  Is  it 
well  with  the  child  ?" 

But  expressive  as  is  this  inquiry  when  applied  to 
the  temporal  welfare  of  your  child,  what  an  added 
emphasis  does  it  have,  when  we  carry  it  still  farther, 
and  refer  the  question  to  that  child's  spiritual  hopes  ! 
There  it  is,  in  the  feebleness  of  wailing  infancy — appa- 
rently so  frail,  that  its  existence,  like  that  of  the 
delicate  flower,  might  suddenly  be  nipped  even  by 
the  rude  winds  of  heaven — and  realizing  the  descrip- 
tion which  Job  gives  of  our  nature,  that  its  "  founda- 
tion is  in  the  dust,  and  it  is  crushed  before  the  moth." 
Yet  that  frail  creature  is  a  candidate  for  immortality, 
and  no  power  in  the  universe  can  end  the  existence 
which  has  now  been  breathed  into  it.  Disease  or  vio- 
lence may  reduce  to  insensibility  that  tender  frame,  but 
it  will  only  be  transferring  its  life  to  another  sphere  of 
being.  That  weak  and  powerless  body  is  the  prison- 
house  of  a  spirit  which  must  live  long  after  the  mate- 
rial universe  has  passed  away,  and  which,  through 
all  the  wasteless  ages  of  its  immortality,  must  be 
rejoicing  in  bliss  ineffable,  or  else  mingling  its  wail 
with  the  despairing  cry  of  those  to  whom 

"  Hope  never  comes, 

That  comes  to  all."* 

To  the  thoughtful  mind,  then,  what  solemn  re- 
flections gather  around  the  unconscious  infant !  How 
strange  the  contrasts  suggested,  between  what  it  is 
and  what  it  shall  be  !  How  lofty  the  speculations  in 
which  we  may  indulge,  on  the  destiny  which  awaits 
it  in  this  world,  and  in  that  which  is  to  come ! 

But  with  what  intense  interest  should  these  emo- 

*  Paradise  Lost,  Book  i.  c.  66. 


192      THE  CHURCH'S  VIEW  OF  INFANT  BAPTISM. 

tions  come  home  to  the  hearts  of  those  who  are 
intrusted  with  the  guidance  of  that  child  !  They  are 
to  give  the  first  impulse  and  direction  to  that  immor- 
tal being.  They  are  to  allure  it  on  to  Heaven,  or 
else  suffer  it  to  be  lost  forever.  They  arc  to  impress 
upon  its  infant  mind,  those  earliest  lessons  which  are 
to  give  tone  and  character  to  its  expanding  faculties. 
On  them,  then,  in  a  great  measure  it  depends, 
whether  that  infant  is  to  be  hereafter  a  saint  in  glory, 
or  through  eternity,  undone — a  castaway.  What 
force,  therefore,  is  there  in  the  question — "  Is  it  well 
with  the  child  ?"  It  is  asking,  whether  you  have 
dene  all  that  is  in  your  power  to  lead  it  forward  in 
the  way  of  life. 

Neither  is  this  an  inquiry  which  is  without  mean- 
ing until  your  child  is  old  enough  to  be  benefitted  by 
your  instructions.  You  have  a  spiritual  duty  to 
perform  in  its  behalf,  even  before  the  hours  arrive 
when  its  unfolding  mind  allows  it  to  profit  by  your 
teaching.  Long  ere  that  time  has  come,  you  may 
place  it  within  the  fold  of  Christ,  and  by  the  waters 
of  baptism  dedicate  it  to  Him  forever.  This  is  your, 
earliest  duty,  and  until  it  is  fulfilled,  you  have  neg- 
lected the  first  step  in  seeking  the  welfare  of  your 
child.  In  addressing  you  then,  this  evening,  on  THE 
Church's  view  of  Infant  Baptism,  I  would 
endeavor,  by  God's  blessing,  to  impress  upon  you 
the  necessity  of  bringing  your  children  forward, 
"  that  they  may  be  baptized  with  water  and  the  Holy 
Ghost,  and  received  into  Christ's  holy  Church,  and 
be  made  living  members  of  the  same."'"^ 

The   first   point,    then,    to   be   considered   is — the 

•  Address  in  the  Baptismal  Service. 


THE  CHURCH'S  VIEW  OF  INFANT  BAPTISM.     1 93 

aiitJiority  for  infant  baptism.  This  rite  is  rejected  by 
some,  as  you  are  well  aware,  on  the  ground  that  it  is 
not  expressly  commanded  in  Scripture.  The  futility 
of  this  objection  will  at  once  be  seen,  if  we  remember 
how  many  other  duties  we  perform,  which  are  not 
even  mentioned  in  the  word  of  God.  That  volume 
is  intended  to  be  merely  the  outline  for  our  guidance, 
and  it  would  be  impossible,  within  its  narrow  limits, 
to  specify  each  particular  act  incumbent  upon  us.  If 
we  take  this  ground,  that  the  authority  for  each  rite 
and  custom  must  be  drawn  only  from  the  Inspired 
Volume,  we  must  refuse  to  admit  females  to  the 
celebration  of  the  Lord's  Supper,  because  there  is  no 
instance  recorded  in  the  New  Testament  of  their 
having  received  it,  and  decline  any  longer  to  observe 
as  holy  the  first  day  of  the  week  instead  of  the 
seventh,  because  we  can  find  no  express  command 
enjoining  the  change.  We  turn,  therefore,  to  the 
practice  of  the  Primitive  Church,  and  as  we  find  that 
the  early  followers  of  our  Lord  observed  both  these 
customs,  we  have  no  hesitation  in  following  their 
example.  And  for  a  reason  precisely  similar  we  feel 
constrained  to  admit  infants  to  the  waters  of  baptism. 
But  although  this  rite  is  not  expressly  inculcated 
in  Scripture,  yet  we  think  there  are  many  intimations 
in  the  New  Testament  which  are  clearly  in  its  favor. 
We  find  that  when  the  heads  of  families  were  con- 
verted to  Christianity  by  the  Apostles,  they  were  not 
only  themselves  baptized,  but  also  their  households 
with  them.  Thus  it  is  stated,  that  "  Lydia  and  her 
household  "^ — "  the  jailer  and  all  his  ....  with  all 
his  house "t — and  "the  household  of  Stephanas ":{: — 
•  Acts  xvi.  15,  t  Acts  xvi.  33,  34.  %  i  Cor.  i.  16. 


194      THE  CHURCH'S  VIEW  OF  INFANT  BAPTISM. 

were  baptized  by  St.  Paul.  Now,  is  it  probable  that 
these  households  were  all  composed  of  none  but 
adults — that  there  were  no  children  belonging  to 
them  ?  If,  indeed,  we  examine  in  the  original  the 
meaning  of  the  word  {oinoi)  rendered  "house"  and 
"household "  in  our  version  of  Scripture,  we  shall 
find  that  the  term  has  a  comprehensiveness,  extend- 
ing to  children,  and  sometimes  to  even  more  remote 
descendants.*  And  this  interpretation  is  strengthened 
by  the  fact,  that  in  the  Syriac  version  of  the  New 
Testament,  which  was  completed  early  in  the  second 
century,  if  not  before,!  this  word  is  in  every  case 
rendered  "children ;"  thus — "  Lydia  and  her  child- 
ren"— "the  jailer  with  all  his  children  "—and  "the 
children  of  Stephanas."  The  Church  therefore  in 
that  age  must  surely  have  believed,  that  children 
were  baptized  by  the  Apostles.  This  indeed  was 
only  the  enjoyment  of  that  grace  which  St.  Peter 
declared  to  the  Jews  they  were  to  inherit.  "  For 
the  promise  " — said  he — "  is  unto  you,  and  to  your 
children." 

And  this  too  was  but  in  accordance  with  the  con- 
duct of  our  Lord  while  on  earth.  He  seems  to  have 
loved  the  little  ones  of  His  flock,  and  to  have  received 
them  into  His  peculiar  favor.  On  one  occasion,  we 
are  told,  "  He  took  a  child,  and  set  him  in  the  midst 

*  "  oiKov,  'family,'  including  every  age  and  sex,  and  of  course, 
infants.  So  Ignatius  Epist.  p.  21,  cited  by  Wolf:  ddHOcZojiiai 
rouJ  oI'kov?  tc^v  aSsXqiojv  f.iov  dvr  yvvaiqi  nai  renvoi'-,.''' 
Bloomfield'' s  Greek  Test.,  i  Cor.  i.  16. 

t  "  This  version  (the  Syriac)  is  confessedly  of  the  highest  antiquity, 
and  there  is  every  reason  to  believe  that  it  was  made,  if  not  in  the 
first  century,  at  least  in  the  beginning  of  the  second  century." — 
Home's  Introd.  to  Scrip.,  v.  ii.  p.  203. 


THE  CHURCH'S  VIEW  OF  INFANT  BAPTISM.      1 95 

of  tliem  ;  and  when  He  had  taken  him  in  His  arms, 
He  said  unto  thera,  Whosoever  shall  receive  one  of 
such  children  in  my  name,  receiveth  me."  And 
vvlien,  again,  His  discij^les  would  have  prevented 
those  who  brought  little  children  to  Him,  our  Lord 
rebuked  them,  and  "  was  much  displeased,"  saying, 
"  Suffer  the  little  children  to  come  unto  me,  and 
forbid  them  not;  for  of  such  is  the  Kingdom  of 
God."  And  may  not  the  phrase,  "  Kingdom  of 
God,"  refer  to  the  Militant  Church  here,  as  well  as 
to  the  Church  triumphant  in  Heaven  ?  St.  Mark 
also  adds — "  And  He  took  them  up  in  I  lis  arms,  put 
His  hands  upon  them,  and  blessed  them."  Among, 
too,  the  last  exhortations  which  He  gave  to  His 
Apostle  Peter,  was  the  injunction  — "  Feed  my 
Iambs."  Is  it  probable,  then,  with  this  affection  for 
the  little  ones  of  the  flock,  that  he  would  debar  them 
from  entrance  into  His  Church — that  He  would  bid 
them  stand  without  the  shelter  of  the  fold,  and  not 
participate  in  the  benefits  it  affords  ?  No — such  a 
course  would  be  but  little  in  accordance  with  that 
character,  under  which  the  prophet  Isaiah  foretold 
Him,  when  he  described  Him  as  the  good  Shepherd, 
who  should  "  gather  the  lambs  with  His  arm,  and 
carry  them  in  His  bosom." 

Neither  can  anything  be  argued — as  is  often  done 
— from  the  command  to  His  disciples,  which  seems 
to  render  faith  a  necessary  antecedent  to  baptism — 
"  He  that  believeth,  and  is  baptized  shall  be  saved ; 
but  he  that  believeth  not  shall  be  damned."  This 
refers  to  the  adults  who  then  listened  to  the  word, 
and  who,  of  course,  as  the  Gospel  was  in  that  gene- 
ration new  in  the  world,  had  never  before   had  an 


196      THE  CHURCH'S  VIEW  OF  INFANT  BAPTISM. 

opportunity  of  being  baptized,  and  therefore  in  their 
maturer  years  were  obHged  to  submit  to  that  rite  when 
they  became  proselytes  to  Christianity.  It  is  by  no 
means  an  evidence  that  faith  was  in  every  case  an 
indispensable  requisite  for  baptism.  This  argument, 
indeed,  would  prove  entirely  too  much.  If  the  first 
half  of  the  verse — "  he  that  believeth  and  is  baptized, 
shall  be  saved  " — debars  infants  from  baptism  for 
want  of  faith,  then  the  last  half — "  he  that  believeth 
not  shall  be  damned  " — would  exclude  them  from 
heaven,  for  the  same  reason.  The  Church,  therefore, 
in  her  Baptismal  Service,  after  that  portion  of  St. 
Mark's  Gospel  has  been  read,  which  gives  the  narra- 
tive of  our  Lord's  love  for  little  children,  directs  the 
following  exhortation  to  be  made — "  Beloved,  ye 
hear  in  this  Gospel  the  words  of  our  Saviour  Christ, 
that  He  commanded  the  children  to  be  brought  unto 
Him  J  how  He  blamed  those  who  would  have  kept 
them  from  Him,  how  He  exhorteth  all  men  to  follow 
their  innocency.  Ye  perceive  how,  by  His  outward 
gesture  and  deed,  He  declared  His  good  will  toward 
them ;  for  He  embraced  them  in  His  arms.  He  laid 
His  hands  upon  them,  and  blessed  them.  Doubt  ye 
not,  therefore,  but  earnestly  believe,  that  He  will 
likewise  favorably  receive  this  present  infant ;  that  He 
will  embrace  him  with  the  arms  of  His  mercy ;  that 
He  will  give  unto  him  the  blessing  of  eternal  life,  and 
make  him  partaker  of  His  everlasting  Kingdom. 
Wherefore,  we  being  thus  persuaded  of  the  good  will 
of  our  Heavenly  Father  towards  this  infant,  declared 
by  His  Son  Jesus  Christ :  and  nothing  doubting,  but 
that  He  favorably  allowcth  this  charitable  work  of 
ours,  in  bringing   this  infant  to  this  holy  baptism  ; 


THE  CHURCH'S  VIEW  OF  INFANT  BAPTISM.    1 97 

let  US  faithfully  and  devoutly  give  thanks  unto 
Him." 

And  I  rejoice,  brethren,  that  it  is  so.  I  thank 
Heaven  that  the  Church  takes  this  wide  and  expanded 
view  of  the  loving  kindness  of  Him,  in  whose  steps 
she  directs  us  to  walk.  Were  she  unfaithful  to  her 
high  trust,  in  this  particular,  I  could  not  minister  at 
her  altars,  or  coldly  repel  from  her  fold  those  who 
most  need  her  nurture.  I  could  not  preach  the 
chilling  doctrines  of  a  creed,  which  proclaims  to  be 
unworthy  of  admission  into  the  Church  on  earth, 
those  little  ones,  with  regard  to  whom  our  Lord  has 
expressly  said — "of  such  is  the  Kingdom  of  God." 

Again — a  direct  argument  in  favor  of  infant  bap- 
tism is  derived  from  the  fact,  that  baptism  has  taken 
the  place  of  circumcision.  The  Christian  dispensation 
— as  I  have  already  remarked  to  you  in  a  former 
Lecture — is  only  a  continuation — a  fuller  develop- 
ment of  the  Jewish.  It  is  the  same  Church,  but 
expanded  into  a  nobler  form."*  While,  therefore,  the 
most  perfect  parallel  can  be  drawn  between  the  two, 
among  other  particulars,  we  find  circumcision  as  an 
initiatory  rite  laid  aside,  and  baptism  adopted  in  its 
place.  We  should  expect,  therefore,  to  find  the 
latter  in  every  respect  answering  to  the  former.  And 
so  it  does.  When  an  adult  became  a  proselyte  from 
idolatry  to  Judaism,  God  commanded  him  to  be 
circumcised  ;  and  when  a  heathen  in  this  age,  in  the 
maturity  of  his  years,  listens  for  the  first  time  to  the 
news  of  the  Gospel,  and  bows  his  heart  to  its  sway, 
he  in  the  same  way  is  baptized,  in  token  of  his 
allegiance.      But   by  the  express    direction  of  God, 

*  See  Lecture  II, 


rpS     THE  CHURCH'S  VIEW  OF  INFANT  BAPTISM. 

infants  were  also  admitted  by  circumcision  into  the 
Jewish  Church  ;  why,  then,  can  they  not  by  baptism 
be  received  into  the  Christian  fold  ?  If  they  are 
unworthy  in  the  latter  case,  why  were  they  not  in  the 
former  ?  If  they  are  to  be  debarred  now,  because 
they  are  incapable  of  understanding  their  obligations, 
and  believing  in  God,  surely  they  were  equally 
incapable  of  doing  so  under  the  Mosaic  Economy. 
No,  brethren,  believe  it  not,  that  the  little  ones  of  the 
flock  are  to  be  excluded.  The  Church  is  the  same 
in  all  ages,  and  so  are  the  general  principles  by 
which  she  is  regulated.  And  now,  as  in  the  ancient 
days,  "  tlie  promise  is  to  you  and  to  your  children."* 

*  This  argument  might  be  strengthened  by  a  more  particular  refer- 
ence to  Jewish  customs.  Baptism,  under  the  Christian  dispensation, 
was  not  a  new  rite,' for  it  had  long  been  practised  among  the  Jews. 
Our  Lord  merely  retained  it,  at  the  same  time  investing  it  with  a  new 
authority  and  meaning.  When  John,  therefore,  commenced  baptizing, 
the  Pharisees  and  Scribes  did  not  ask  him  the  meaning  of  this  rite, 
but,  simply,  by  what  authority  he^dministered  it.  "  Why  baptizest 
thou  then,  if  thou  be  not  that  Christ,  nor  Elias,  neither  that  prophet  ?" 
{John  i.  25.) 

Every  proselyte  among  the  Jews  was  circumcised,  baptized,  and 
obliged  to  offer  a  sacrifice.  Thus,  Maimonides  says — "  In  all  ages, 
when  a  Gentile  is  willing  to  enter  into  Covenant,  and  gather  himself 
under  the  wings  of  the  Majesty  of  God,  and  take  upon  him  the  yoke 
of  the  Law,  he  must  be  circumcised  and  baptized,  and  bring  a  sacrifice  : 
or,  if  it  b;  a  woman,  be  baptized  and  brin^  a  sacrifice.'^ 

In  such  cases,  their  children,  even  if  infants,  were  baptized  with 
them.  This  was  done  in  the  presence  of  three  persons,  called  the 
Cotirt,  or  the  House  of  ytidgmetit,  who  acted  as  witnesses  ;  and  from 
this  Jewish  practice  the  Christian  Church  has  derived  the  custom  of 
having  the  same  number  of  sponsors  at  the  Baptism  of  each  child. 
Thus,  in  the  Gemara  Babylon,  we  find  this  declaration — "  They  are 
wont  to  baptize  such  a  Proselyte  in  infancy,  upon  the  profession  of  the 
House  of  TiKlrr,nent  ;  for  this  is  for  his  good."  Upon  which  passa:;e 
there  is  the  following  gloss — "  'They  are  wont  to  baptize.'  Because 
none  is  made  a  Proselyte  without  circumcision  and  Baptism.  '  Upon 
the  profession  of  the   House  of  Judgment.'     That  is,  the  three  men 


THE  CHURCH'S  VIEW  OF  INFANT  BAPTISM.     1 99 

There  is  another  argument  on  this  subject  which  is 
most  conclusive.  It  is  the  fact,  that  even  in  the  first 
age  of  the  Church — from  the  Apostles'  days — infant 
baptism  has  been  practiced.  We  learn  this,  in  a 
great  measure,  incidentally  from  the  early  writers. 
We  do  not  find  this  rite  explicitly  set  forth  and  com- 
manded by  them,  because  it  was  unnecessary  to  do 
so ;  for  in  that  age  no  one  doubted  its  obligation. 
Yet  the  allusions  to  it  are  such  as  with  any  reasonable 
mind  place  the  matter  beyond  a  doubt. 

For  instance — Justin  Martyr,  who  was  born  near 
the  close  of  the  first  century,  in  speaking  of  Christians 
cotemporary  with  himself,  says  that  "  there  were 
among  Christians  in  his  time  many  persons  of  both 
sexes,  some  sixty,  some  seventy  years  old,  who  had 
been  made  disciples  to  Christ  from  their  infancy,  and 
continued  virgins  or  uncorrupted  all  their  lives."* 
Now  in  what  way,  we  ask,  could  infants  be  made 
disciples   of  Christ,    except   by   baptism  ?     And    as 

who  have  the  care  of  his  Baptism,  according  to  the  law  of  the  baptism 
of  proselytes,  which  requires  three  men,  who  do  so  become  to  him  a 
father,  and  he  is  by  them  made  a  Proselyte."  Again,  "He  is  no 
Proselyte,  unless  he  is  circumcised  and  baptized,  and  if  he  be  not  bap- 
tized he  remains  a  Gentile. ' ' 

Again,  IMaimonides  says,  "  A  Proselyte  that  is  under  age,  they  are 
wont  to  baptize  upon  the  profession  of  the  Court ;  because  this  is  for 
his  good."  And — "  An  Israelite  that  takes  a  little  Heathen  child,  or 
that  finds  a  Heathen  infant,  and  baptizes  him  for  a  proselyte,  behold 
he  is  a  proselyte." 

The  works  of  Lightfoot,  Selden,  and  Wall,  abound  with  similar 
extracts  from  Jewish  writers,  proving  their  custom  of  baptizing  infants. 
But  did  our  Lord  any  where  rebuke  his  countrymen  for  it  ?  Did  He 
denounce  it  as  a  vain  form  and  superstition  ?  If  He  did  not,  is  it  not 
rather  late  in  the  day  for  uninspired  teachers  to  begin  this  work,  or  to 
stigmatize  as  "a  remnant  of  Popery,"  a  custom  which  had  existed  for 
2500  years  ? 

*  Apol.  ii.  p.  62. 


200     THE  CHURCH'S  VIEW  OF  INFANT  BAPTISM: 

Justin  wrote  this  Apology  about  the  year  148,*  those 
of  whom  he  speaks  as  baptized  sixty  or  seventy  years 
before,  in  their  infancy,  must  have  been  persons 
baptized  in  the  first  age,  while  some  of  the  Apostles 
were  living.  This  rite "  must  therefore  have  been 
administered  with  their  concurrence  and  sanc- 
tion. 

Again — such  is  also  the  testimony  of  Irenaeus,  who 
was  born  during  the  days  of  the  Apostles,  in  the  year 
97,t  and  trained  up  under  St.  Polycarp,  "  the  angel 
of  the  Church  in  Smyrna,"  who  had  himself  been  a 
disciple  of  St.  John.  He  speaks  of  baptism  as  "  re- 
generation, "|  and  mentions   among   those  who  are 


*  Bingham's  Orig.  Eccles.  lib.  xi.  ch.  4,  sect.  7. 

t  Cave's  Hist.  Liter,  vol.  i.  p.  41. 

t  To  show  the  sense  in  which  the  word  "  refjenerrition  "  has  alwavs 
been  used  in  the  Church,  we  give  the  following  passage  from  Bishop 
Herbert's  writings— "^\'Tlen  the  Churchman,  in  the  language  of  Scrip- 
ture, of  primitive  antiquity,  and  of  the  Articles  and  Liturgy  of  his 
Church,  calls  baptism  regeneration,  he  does  not  employ  the  term  in 
its  popular  signification  among  many  Protestants,  to  denote  the  di- 
vine influences  upon  the  soul  in  its  sanctification  and  renovation,  in 
abolishing  the  body  of  sin,  and  raising  up  the  graces  and  virtues  of 
the  new  man.  The  term  regeneration  is  used  by  him  in  its  original, 
and  appropriate,  and  technical  acceptation,  to  denote  the  translation 
of  the  baptized  person  from  that  state  in  which,  as  destitute  of  any 
covenanted  title  to  salvation,  he  is  styled  'the  child  of  wrath,'  into 
that  state  which,  as  it  proffers  to  him  in  all  cases  the  covenanted 
mercy  and  grace  of  God,  and  in  the  exercise  of  repentance  and  faith 
actually  conveys  to  him  these  blessings,  is  styled  a  'state  of  salvation.' 
(Catechism  of  the  Church.)  It  must  be  obvious,  that  the  sacramental 
commencement  of  the  spiritual  life  in  the  regeneration  of  baptism,  and 
the  subsequent  sanctification  of  the  principles,  the  powers,  and  affec- 
tions of  the  new  man,  by  the  renewing  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  are  dis- 
tinct acts  and  operations;  the  former  leading  to  the  latter,  which,  without 
it,  is  wholly  inefficacious  to  salvation  ;  on  the  contrary,  increases  the 
condemnation  of  the  despiser  of  the  gifts  and  calling  of  God."  Charge 
to  the  Clergy  of  New  York,  in  18  ig. 


THE  CHURCH'S  VIEW  OF  INFANT  BAPTISM.      20I 

thus  regenerated  to  God,  "  infants  and  little  ones, 
and  children,  and  youths,  and  elder  persons."* 

Clemens  of  Alexandria,  who  was  born  about  the 
middle  of  the  second  century,  wrote  a  work  intended 
to  instruct  young  Christians  in  the  practical  duties  of 
their  faith.  In  the  course  of  this,  he  reproves  them 
for  the  devices  engraved  on  their  seals,  for  which 
purpose  they  sometimes  used  images  taken  from  the 
ancient  idolatry,  and  at  the  same  time  suggests  some 
figures  more  Christian  in  their  character.  Thus,  he 
says, — "If  any  one  be  a  fisherman,  let  him  think  of  an 
Apostle,  and  the  children  taken  out  of  the  zuater."\  If 
then,  Clemens  could  thus  exhort  them  to  select  the 
representation  of  an  Apostle  baptizing  infants,  does  it 
not  prove  that  he  believed  the  Apostles  did  administer 
that  rite  even  to  those  of  that  tender  age,  and  that 
such  in  his  time  was  the  practice  of  the  Church  ? 

Origen — who  was  born  in  the  second  century — had 
been  trained  up  from  infancy  by  Christian  parents 
— visited,  in  his  travels,  most  of  the  churches  in  the 
world — and  gained  the  reputation  of  being  the  most 
learned  man  of  his  age — records  his  testimony  most 
unequivocally  in  behalf  of  infant  baptism.  His  lan- 
guage is — "  Let  it  be  considered,  what  is  the  reason 
why  the  baptism  of  the  Church,  which  is  given  for 
remission  of  sins,  is,  by  the  usage  of  the  Church,  given 
to  infants;  also  whereas,  if  there  were  nothing  in  infants 
which  needed  forgiveness  and  mercy,  the  grace  of  bap- 
tism would  seem  to  be  to  them  superfluous.":]: 

Again,  he  says — "  Infants  are  baptized  for  the  re- 
mission of  sins.     Of  what  sins,  or  at  what  time  have 

*  Adv.  Hasres.  lib.  ii.  ch.  39.  \  Poedogog.  lib.  iii.  ch.  ri. 

X  Ilomil.  viii.  in  Levit.  ch.  12. 


202     THE  CHURCH'S  VIEW  OF  INFANT  BAPTISM. 

they  sinned  ?  Or  how  can  there  be  in  infants  any 
reason  for  the  Laver,  unless  according  to  that  sense 
of  which  we  have  spoken  a  Httle  before,  viz. — '  No  one 
is  free  from  pollution,  although  his  life  upon  the  earth 
has  been  but  one  day.'  And  because  by  the  Sacra- 
ment of  baptism  native  pollution  is  removed,  therefore 
iiifaiits  also  are  baptized."''' 

And  again — "The  Church  received  from  tJie  Apostles 
a  tradition  to  give  baptism  also  to  infants.  For  they 
to  whom  the  Divine  mysteries  were  committed,  knew 
that  there  is  in  all  persons  the  natural  pollution  of  sin, 
which  should  be  washed  away  by  water  and  the  Spirit, 
and  on  account  of  which,  also,  the  body  itself  is  called 
the  body  of  sin. "f 

We  would  appeal  then  to  your  reason ;  who  is 
most  likely  to  have  been  correct  on  this  point,  Origen 
— who  lived  before  the  memory  of  the  Apostles  had 
faded  from  the  Church — or  those  who,  1500  years 
after  their  day,  for  the  first  time  discovered  that  infant 
baptism  should  not  be  administered  ? 

St  Augustine,  Bishop  of  Hippo,  in  Africa,  who 
was  born  about  the  middle  of  the  fourth  century,  bears 
the  same  testimony.  His  words  are — "  And  if  any 
one  do  ask  for  Divine  authority  in  this  matter — though 
that  which  tJie  ^uJiole  Church  practises,  and  zvhich  has 
not  been  instituted  by  councils,  but  was  ever  in  use,  is 
very  reasonably  believed  to  be  no  other  than  a  thing 
delivered  by  authority  of  the  Apostles — yet  we  may 
besides  take  a  true  estimate  how  much  the  Sacrament 
docs  avail  infants,  by  the  circumcision  which  God's 
former  people  received.":}: 

*  Horn,  in  I.iic.  c.  14. 

t  Com.  in  Rom.  lib.  5.  t  De  Bap.  lib.  v.  c.  23. 


THE  CHURCH'S  VIEW  OF  INFANT  BAPTISM.     203 

"  We  affirm,  that  the  Holy  Spirit  dwells  in  baptized 
ijifajtts,  though  they  know  it  not ;  for  after  the  same 
manner  they  know  Him  not,  though  He  be  in  them, 
as  they  know  not  their  own  soul.  The  reason 
whereof,  which  they  cannot  yet  make  use  of,  is  in 
them  as  a  spark  raked  up  which  will  kindle  as  they 
grow  in  years."* 

In  another  place,  referring  to  the  Pelagians,  he 
says — "  They  grant  that  infants  must  be  baptized,  as 
not  being  able  to  oppose  the  authority  of  the  whole 
Church,  which  was  doubtless  delivered  by  our  Lord 
and  his  Apostles."^ 

"  Original  sin  is  so  plain  by  the  Scriptures ;  and 
that  it  is  forgiven  to  ijifants  in  the  Laver  of  Regenera- 
tion, is  so  confirmed  by  the  antiquity  and  authority 
of  the  Catholic  faith,  and  so  notoriously  the  practice 
of  the  Church,  that  whatsoever  is  contrary  to  this 
cannot  be  true.":}; 

"  The  custom  of  our  mother,  the  Church,  in  bap- 
tizing infants,  must  not  be  disregarded,  nor  con- 
sidered needless,  nor  believed  to  be  other  than  a 
tradition  of  the  Apostles."§ 

St.  Ambrose,  the  Bishop  of  Milan,  who  was  born 
A.  D.  340,  in  speaking  of  the  miracle  by  which 
Elijah  divided  the  river  Jordan,  and  caused  the 
waters  to  flow  backwards  to  their  so'urce,  (2  Kings 
xi.)  says — "  It  signified  the  Sacrament  of  the  Laver 
of  Salvation,  which  was  afterwards  to  be  instituted, 
by  which  those  infants  that  are  baptized  are  reformed 

*  Epist.  57,  ad  Dardanum. 

\  De  Peccat.  c.  26.  %  Contra  Pelag.  Lib.  iii.  c.  10. 

§  De  Gen.  ad  lit.  lib.  10. 


204      THE  CHURCH'S  VIEW  OF  INFANT  BAPTISM. 

back  again  from  a  state  of  wickedness,  to  the  primi- 
tive state  of  their  nature."  "''■ 

"  No  person  comes  to  the  kingdom  of  Heaven  but 
by  the  Sacrament  of  Baptism.  For  '  unless  a  per- 
son be  born  again  of  water  and  of  the  Holy  Spirit, 
he  cannot  enter  into  the  kingdom  of  God.'  You  see 
He  excepts  no  person,  not  an  infant,  not  one  that  is 
hindered  by  any  unavoidable  accident."t 

St.  Chrysostom,  the  eloquent  Bishop  of  Constanti- 
nople, who  was  also  born  about  the  middle  of  the 
fourth  century,  says — "  And  those  that  are  baptized, 
some  of  tliem  were  children  ivhen  they  received  it."X 

Again,  when  referring  to  the  Jewish  Circumcision, 
and  the  age  of  eight  days,  at  which  it  was  adminis- 
tered, he  says — "  But  our  Circumcision — I  mean  the 
grace  of  Baptism — has  no  determinate  time  as  that 
had ;  but  07ie  that  is  in  the  very  beginning  of  his  age, 
or  one  that  is  in  the  middle  of  it,  or  one  that  is  in  his 
old  age,  may  receive  this  circumcision  made  without 
hands,  in  which  there  is  no  trouble  to  be  undergone, 
but  to  throw  off  the  load  of  sins,  and  receive  pardon 
for  all  foregoing  offences."§ 

In  the  same  way,  his  cotemporary,  Theodoret  the 
historian,  a  Syrian  Bishop,  speaking  of  Baptism  as 
conveying  forgiveness  of  past  sins,  says — "  If  it  had 
no  other  effect  than  that,  what  need  we  baptize  infants, 
that  have  not  tasted  of  sin  ?"i| 

Such,  then,  is  the  unvarying  testimony  of  the 
Primitive  Church,  on  this  important  doctrine.     And 

*  Comm.  lib.  i.  in  St.  Luc.  c.  i. 

t  De  Abraham  Patriarch,  lib.  ii.  c.  ii. 

X  Horn.  23,  ill  Acta.  Apost.  §  Horn.  40,  in  Gen. 

II  Haeretic.  Fabular.  lib.  v.  de  Bapt. 


THE  CHURCH'S  VIEW  OF  INFANT  BAPTISM.      205 

the  view  we  have  given  is  strengthened  by  the  dis- 
cussions which  in  those  ages  took  place  on  this 
subject,  since  in  none  of  them  do  we  ever  find  a 
doubt  suggested  as  to  the  lawfulness  of  infant  bap- 
tism. The  controversy  was  always  on  some  collateral 
point.  The  earliest  of  these  is  by  Tertullian,  in  the 
beginning  of  the  third  century,  a  writer  whose  strange 
speculations  led  him  on  from  one  step  to  another, 
until  at  last  he  fell  into  heresy,  and  openly  became  a 
Montanist.  Believing  that  the  rite  of  Baptism  at  any 
period  of  life  entirely  washed  away  all  sin,  he  proposed 
that  it  should  be  delayed  as  long  as  possible,  even  if 
it  could  be  done,  to  a  person's  last  hour,  that  thus 
the  collected  iniquities  of  a  lifetime  might  at  once  be 
swept  away.  He  acknowledges,  however,  that  the 
custom  of  the  Church  has  always  been  otherwise ;  a 
fact  which  is  sufficiently  proved  by  the  very  nature 
of  his  argument.  He  is  plainly  contending  in  behalf 
of  an  innovation.  His  words  are — "  For  according 
to  every  one's  condition,  and  disposition,  and  also 
their  age,  the  delaying  of  Baptism  is  more  advan- 
tageous, especially  in  the  case  of  little  children.  For 
what  need  is  there  that  the  godfathers  should  be 
brought  into  danger  ?  Because  they  may  either  fail 
of  their  promises  by  death,  or  they  may  be  deceived 

by  a  child's  proving  of  wicked  disposition 

What  need  their  innocent  age  make  such  haste  to  tlie 
forgiveness  of  sins  ?"*  "  The  way  of  TertuUian's 
arguing  upon  this  point  " — says  jBingham — "  shows 
plainly,  that  he  was  for  introducing  a  new  practice ; 
that  therefore  it  was  the  custom  of  the  Church  in  his 

*  De  Bap.  c.  18. 


206      THE  CHURCH'S  VIEW  OF  INFANT  BAPTISM. 

time  to  give  Baptism  to  infants,  as  well  as  to  adult 
persons."* 

But,  in  giving  this  advice  about  delay,  he  himself 
confines  it  to  cases  where  there  was  no  danger  or 
apprehension  of  death.  For,  otherwise,  he  pleads 
strongly  for  the  necessity  of  immediate  baptism,  both 
from  those  words  of  our  Lord — "  Except  a  man  be 
born  of  water  and  of  the  Spirit,  he  cannot  enter  into 
the  kingdom  of  God  " — and  also  from  that  general 
corruption  of  original  sin,  which  infects  infants  as 
much  as  adults. t 

The  only  other  ancient  writer  who  varied  some- 
what from  the  general  opinion  of  the  Church  was  St. 
Gregory  Nazianzen,  Bishop  of  Constantinople,  in  the 
latter  part  of  the  fourth  century.  He  did  not  carry 
his  wish  for  innovation  as  far  as  Tertullian,  for  he  did 
not  desire  Baptism  to  be  postponed  until  persons  had 
reached  years  of  maturity,  but  only  until  they  were 
three  years  old,  that  they  might  gain  at  least  some 
little  glimmering  of  religious  truth.  He  agrees  with 
Tertullian,  however,  in  declaring  that  all  who  are  in 
any  danger  should  be  at  once  baptized,  lest  any  die 
without  that  sacrament.  With  regard  to  those  in 
whose  case  nothing  like  this  is  apprehended,  his 
language  is — "  As  for  others,  I  give  my  opinion  that 
they  should  stay  three  years  or  thereabouts,  when 
they  are  capable  to  hear  and  answer  some  of  the 
holy  words  ;  and  though  they  do  not  perfectly  under- 
stand them,  yet  they  form  them ;  and  that  you  then 
sanctify  them  in  soul  and  body  with  the  great  sacra- 
ment of  initiation.":]:     Here  again  we  see,  that  he  was 

*  Orig.  Eccles.  lib.  xi.  ch.  iv.  sect.   lo. 

•f  De  anima,  cap.  40 — De  Bapt.  cap.  13.  %  De  Bap.  Orat.  40. 


THE  CHURCH'S  VIEW  OF  INFANT  BAPTISM.    207 

pleading  against  the  ancient,  uniform  practice  of  the 
Church. 

Such,  too,  is  tlie  evidence  we  may  draw  from  the 
first  discussion  of  this  subject  before  a  pubHc  council 
of  the  Church.     This  was  the  Council  of  Carthage. 
A.  D.  253,  where  66  Bishops  were   assembled,  whose 
proceedings  we  learn  from  St.  Cyprian.     No  one  had 
then  the  hardihood  to  inquire,  whether  infant  baptism 
ought   to    be   administered    or   not ;  but    Fidus,  the 
Bishop  of  a  country  diocese,  proposed  to  the  Council 
the  question — "  Whether  infants  ought  to  be  baptized 
before  they  were  eight  days  old  ?" — since  this  was 
the  age  for  circumcision  in  the  Jewish  Church.     But 
the  Council  unanimously  decided,  that  there  was  no 
occasion  for  this  delay,  but  infants  might  be  baptized 
at  any  time.     And  in  their  Synodical  Epistle  to  Fidiis, 
the  following  unequivocal  language  is  used — "  As  to 
the  case  of  infants,  whereas    you   judge  '  that   they 
must  not  be  baptized  within  two  or  three  days  after 
they  are  born,  and  that  the  rule  of  circumcision  is  to 
be  observed,  so  that  none  should  be  baptized   and 
sanctified  before  the  eighth  day  after  he   is  born,'  we 
were   all   in   our  assembly  of  the  contrary  opinion. 
For,   as  for  what  you   thought   fitting  to  be  done, 
i!here  was  not  one  that  was  of  your  mind,  but  all  of 
us,  on  the  contrary,  judged  that  the  grace  and  mercy 
of  God  [/.  e.,  as  conveyed  through  Baptism]  is  to  be 

denied  to  no  person  that  is  born." "  And, 

therefore,  dearest  brother,  this  was  our  sentence  in 
the  Council,  that  no  one  ought  to  be  hindered  by  us 
from  Baptism  and  the  Grace  of  God,  who  is  merciful 
and  kind  and  affectionate  to  all." 

The  result,  then,  to  which  history  brings  us  is  this 


2o8    THE  CHURCH'S  VIEW  OF  INFANT  BAPTISM. 

— that  during  the  first  i  lOO  years  of  the  existence  of 
the  Christian  Church,  no  society  of  men,  or  even 
single  individual  of  whom  we  have  any  record,  denied 
the  lawfulness  of  infant  baptism.  The  first  direct 
opposition  to  this  rite  arose  about  the  year  1126,  in 
the  midst  of  the  darkness  which  had  overspread  the 
greater  part  of  Europe,  and  the  wild  fanaticism  and 
fearful  perversions  of  the  truth  to  which  it  gave  birth. 
At  this  time,  an  obscure  sect  founded  by  Peter  de 
Bruys — some  of  whose  opinions  were  afterwards 
adopted  by  the  Albigenses  and  Waldenses — declared 
against  the  baptism  of  infants,  because  they  believed 
them  to  be  incapable  of  salvation.*  This  doctrine, 
however,  was  received  by  but  few,  and  became  ex- 
tinct in  1 147,  after  the  death  of  de  Bruys  and  his 
immediate  followers. 

It  was  not  until  about  1522  that  this  heresy 
obtained  any  permanent  footing.  At  the  time  of  the 
Reformation,  when  the  human  mind,  bursting  from 
its  long  thraldom,  naturally  abused  its  newly  acquired 
liberty — when  it  rioted  in  a  thousand  fantastic  forms, 
enabling  each  one  to  form  his  creed  according  to  the 
peculiar  caprices  of  his  own  heart — when,  antiquity 
and  authority  being  disregarded,  an  hundred  sects 
arose,  each  diftering  from  the  Church  in  some  one 
particular  which  it  insisted  upon  as  essential — then  it 
was,  that  Infant  Baptism  was  set  aside,  and  a  small 
and  inconsiderable  party  announced  to  the  Christian 
world  that  for  1500  years  the  whole  Church  had 
been  in  grievous  error.  The  preacher  of  this  new 
doctrine  was  Munzer,  152 1,  who,  having  excited  his 
followers  to    insurrection  and  civil  war,  was  finally 

*  Mosheim's  Eccles.  Hist.  v.  ii.  p.  309. 


THE  CHURCH'S  VIEW  OF  INFANT  BAPTISM.     209 

defeated  and  executed.  It  was  not  until  1534  that 
the  sect  of  the  Anabaptists  became  regularly  organ- 
ized as  a  distinct  religious  society.  In  this  year, 
headed  by  John  Boccold,  a  journeyman  tailor,  whom 
they  had  named  their  King,  and  incited  to  the  most 
impious  extravagances  by  John  Matthias,  a  baker, 
who  claimed  to  be  a  prophet,  they  captured  the  city 
of  Munster,  and  attempted  to  establish  a  kingdom  to 
be  called  the  New  Zion."*^  The  city  being  re-captured 
in  the  following  year,  and  their  forces  dispersed,  some 
escaped  to  England,  and  then  for  the  first  time  these 
doctrines  began  to  spread  in  that  land. 

This  then  is  the  view  which  history  gives  us,  of 
the  rise  of  those  who  deny  to  infants  tlie  rite  of 
Baptism.  And  who,  with  this  account  before  him, 
could  hesitate  for  a  moment  to  decide  whether  or  not  it 
should  be  administered  ?  ,0n  the  one  side  is  the  united 
testimony  of  the  Catholic  Church,  as  it  comes  down 
through  eighteen  centuries,  and  on  the  other  are  the 
loud  clamors  of  a  sect  which  three  centuries  ago  just 
struggled  into  being,  and  whose  cradle  was  rocked 
by  the  wild  heavings  of  ignorance  and  fanaticism.f 

*  Mosheim's  Eccles.  Hist.  v.  iii.  p.  65. 

f  It  is  well  known  that  Roger  Williams  was  the  founder  of  the  sect 
of  the  Baptists  in  this  country.  Who,  then,  gave  him  his  commission  ? 
An  answer  to  this  question  is  found  in  the  following  extract  from  the 
"  History  of  the  Baptist  Church  in  Providence."  "Being  settled  in 
this  place,  which,  from  the  kindness  of  God  to  them,  they  called 
Providence,  Mr.  Williams,  and  those  with  him,  considered  the  impor- 
tance of  Gospel  union,  and  were  desirous  of  forming  themselves  into  a 
Church  ;  but  met  with  considerable  obstruction.  They  were  con- 
vinced of  the  nature  and  design  of  believers'  baptism  by  if)imersion, 
but  from  a  variety  of  circumstances  had  hitherto  been  prevented  from 
submersion.  To  obtain  a  suitable  administralor  was  a  matter  of 
consequence.  At  length  the  candidates  for  communion  nominated 
and  appointed  Ezekiel  HoUiman,  a  man  of  gif'.s  and  pietj,  to  baptize 


2IO      THE   CHURCH'S  VIEW  OF  INFANT  BAPTISM. 

We  may  in  this  respect,  as  in  every  other,  cleave  to 
the  faith  of  Apostles  and  Martyrs  who  lived  when 
the  memory  of  their  Lord's  instruction  was  still  fresh 
on  the  earth  ;  or  we  may  turn  aside  from  the  old  paths, 
to  embrace  every  novelty  which  courts  our  notice. 
We  may  repose  on  the  wisdom  and  example  of  the 
many  generations  which  have  gone  before  us ;  or  we 
may  unsettle  our  faith  by  yielding  to  the  varied 
teaching  of  those  whose  creed  arose  when  the  human 
intellect  was  let  loose  from  its  old  restraints,  and  in 
the  first  moments  of  its  delirium  scarcely  knew  what 
to  believe. 

The  next  point  to  be  considered  is — the  benefit  to 

Mr.  Williams,  and  who  in  return  baptized  Mr.  HoUiman  and  the 
other  ten.'' 

It  is  now  a  principle  for  which  none  contend  more  strenuously  than 
the  rSaptists,  that  Scriptural  and  valid  baptism  cannot  be  administered 
by  any  one  7uho  is  himself  mtbaptized.  Yet  of  these  twelve  persons 
who  thus  baptized  each  other,  not  one  had  previously  been  imn^ersed, 
and,  of  course,  on  Baptist  principles,  they  were  unbaptized.  What 
right,  then,  had  they  to  admit  into  the  visible  fold  of  Christ,  or  to 
"  form  themselves  into  a  Church  ?"  And  are  not  the  Baptists  in  this 
country,  on  their  own  confession,  now  destitute  of  any  kind  of  valid 
baptism  ?  We  have  never  yet  seen  a  satisfactory  answer  to  this  ques- 
tion. It  was  brought  forward  in  the  Banner  of  the  Cross,  April  i, 
1843,  but  those  to  whom  it  was  addressed  seem  not  to  be  anxious  to 
have  any  inquiry  into  their  origin  in  this  country,  or  to  reply  to  the 
demand — "  By  what  authority  doest  thou  these  things?  and  who  gave 
thee  this  authority?"  The  Missouri  Baptist,  however,  with  more 
candor  than  its  associates,  thus  apologizes  for  the  manner  in  which 
these  ?/«^a///s-'£//ai'w«'«  mutually  dipped  each  other — ^^  Under  other 
clrcinnstances  they  tvould glidly  have  availed  themselves  of  a  regular 
adminlstra  or  of  the  ord  nance ;  but  situated  as  they  were,  .  .  .  they 
naturally  and  wisely  concluded  that  He  who  requireth  this  service  will 
not  annex  conditions  incompatible  with  their  obedience,  and,  of 
course,  will  accept  of  their  right  intention  m  the  performance."  May 
not  this  presumption  be  met  with  the  question  addressed  by  Jehovah 
to  some  of  old — "  Who  hath  required  this  at  your  hand,  to  tread  my 
courts?"     (See  the  Banner  of  the  Cross,  April  22.) 


THE  CHURCH'S  VIEW  OF  INFANT  BAPTISM.    211 

be  derived  from  Baptism.  We  hear  the  question 
often  asked-^"  What  use  is  it  to  the  infant  ?"  I 
answer — "  Much,  every  way."  In  the  Catechism  of 
the  Church  it  is  defined  to  be,  "  an  outward 
and  visible  sign  of  an  inward  and  spiritual  grace 
given  unto  us."  We  have  already  seen  in  what 
lofty  terms  the  Primitive  writers  always  refer  to  it, 
and  how  St.  Augustine  speaks  of  the  Spirit  which 
then  rests  upon  the  heart  of  the  unconscious  infant, 
as  "  a  spark  which  will  kindle  as  he  grows  in  years." 
And  this  is  in  strict  accordance  with  the  view  given 
in  Scripture,  where  it  is  mentioned  in  direct  connection 
with  the  influences  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  Thus  our 
Lord  speaks  of  a  person  as  being  "  baptized  with 
water  and  the  Spirit.''  One  of  the  Fathers  of  our 
Church — Bishop  Seabury — therefore  thus  sums  up  this 
point: — "As  to  the  benefits  of  Baptism,  they  are  re- 
mission of  sins,  regeneration  or  adoption  into  the  family 
of  God,  the  presence  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  the  resurrec- 
tion of  the  body,  and  everlasting  life.  That  these 
benefits  are  annexed  to  baptism,  the  Holy  Scriptures 
give  ample  testimony.  '  Repent ' — said  Peter  to  the 
multitude  inquiring  what  they  should  do — '  and  be 
baptized  every  one  of  you,  in  the  name  of  Jesus 
Christ,  for  the  remission  of  sins,  and  ye  shall  receive 
the  gift  of  the  Holy  Ghost'  In  the  same  language 
Ananias  addresses  Saul  —  *  And  now,  why  tarriest 
thou  ?  Arise,  and  be  baptized,  and  wash  away  thy 
sins.'  That  we  are  regenerate  and  born,  or  adopted 
into  the  family  or  Church  of  God  by  Baptism,  Christ 
declared  to  Nicodemus  when  he  said — '  Verily,  verily, 
I  say  unto  thee,  except  a  man  be  born  of  water,  and 
of  the  Spirit,  he  cannot  enter  into  the  Kingdom  of 


212      THE  CHURCH'S  VIEW  OF  INFANT  BAPTISM. 

God.'  The  Kingdom  of  God  is  the  Church  of  God — 
the  same  Church  both  in  this  world  and  the  next, 
(for  God  has  but  one  Church,  the  body  of  Christ) 
By  Baptism  we  are  made  members  of  this  Church  ; 
and  if  we  continue  faithful  members  till  death,  shall 
in  it  obtain  a  happy  resurrection  and  everlasting  life 
— shall  continue  members  of  it  to  all  eternity." 

Therefore  it  is,  that  in  our  service  we  use  petitions 
like  these,  before  the  Baptism — "  We  beseech  Thee, 
for  Thine  infinite  mercy,  that  Thou  wilt  mercifully 
look  upon  this  child  :  wash  him  and  sanctify  him 
with  the  Holy  Ghost " — "  We  call  upon  Thee  for 
this  infant,  that  he,  coming  to  Thy  holy  baptism, 
may  receive  remission  of  sin  by  spiritual  regene- 
ration " — Give  Thy  Holy  Spirit  to  this  infant,  that  he 
may  be  born  again,  and  be  made  an  heir  of  ever- 
lasting salvation  "  —  "  Sanctify  this  water  to  the 
mystical  washing  away  of  sin,  and  grant  that 
this  child,  now  to  be  baptized  therein,  may  receive 
the  fulness  of  Thy  grace."  And  after  the  rite  is 
administered,  we  say — "  We  yield  Thee  hearty  thanks, 
most  merciful  Father,  that  it  hath  pleased  Thee  to 
regenerate  this  infant  with  thy  Holy  Spirit,  to  receive 
him  for  Thine  own  child  by  adoption,  and  to 
incorporate  him  into  Thy  holy  Church."  Such  is 
the  plain  and  unequivocal  teaching  of  the  Church  as 
displayed  in  her  formularies.  And  unless  this  truth 
is  allowed,  that  the  Spirit  is  given  in  Baptism,  that 
rite  becomes  nothing  but  a  mere  empty  ceremony. 

Now  look  for  a  moment  at  the  two  most  common 
objections  to  this  view.  The  first  is — "that  infants 
cannot  receive  the  influences  of  the  Spirit  at  so 
tender  an  age.     But  who  can  pretend  thus  accurately 


THE  CHURCH'S  VIEW  OF  INFAVT  BAPTISM.      213 

to  draw  the  line,  or  to  assert  at  what  period  it  first 
becomes  possible  for  the  image  of  God  to  be  stamped 
upon  an  immortal  soul  ?  Who  can  declare  the  man- 
ner in  which  the  Father  of  spirits  acts  upon  our 
spirits,  or  the  rules  by  which  He  is  guided  ?  We  are 
told  that  John  the  Baptist  was  "  filled  with  the  Holy- 
Ghost,  even  from  his  mother's  womb;"  why  then  is 
not  an  infant  as  capable  of  receiving  spiritual  bless- 
ings now,  as  it  was  eighteen  centuries  ago  ? 

The  other  objection  is — "that  the  child,  as  it 
advances  in  years,  often  gives  no  evidence  of  these 
spiritual  influences."  We  reply  —  that  this  is  no 
proof  that  grace  was  not  imparted  to  it  in  Baptism. 
May  it  not  be  given  at  that  time,  but  when  not  subse- 
quently nourished  by  the  proper  means,  become  as  it 
were  dormant,  and  even  be  quenched  ?  Baptism  is 
the  child's  spiritual  birth  into  the  Church  of  Christ; 
but  unless,  through  the  unceasing  care  of  parents,  it  is 
nurtured  and  trained  up  in  the  fear  of  the  Lord,  it 
may  soon  impair  and  weaken  the  benefit  to  be 
derived  from  this  introduction  into  the  fold.  It  is 
precisely  so  in  the  natural  world.  The  fact  that  the 
child  is  born  into  it,  is  no  proof  that  it  shall  certainly 
live  and  grow.  If  neglected,  and  the  proper  means 
are  not  used  to  increase  its  strength,  it  assuredly  will 
die.  And  in  the  same  way  the  spiritual  life  which 
it  gained  at  baptism  may  by  neglect  and  the  com- 
mission of  sin,  soon  decay,  until,  as  its  faculties  unfold, 
it  becomes  more  and  more  of  the  earth,  earthly.  Yet 
for  all  this  who  can  gainsay  the  truth  that  Baptism  is 
a  high  and  holy  privilege  ?  If  it  place  benefits  within 
the  reach  of  those  who  receive  it,  and  impart  _to  the 
soul  the  first  principles  of  vital,  spiritual  life,  have  we 


214     THE  CHURCH'S  VIEW  OF  INFANT  BAPTISM. 

not  reason  to  rejoice  that  God  thus  permits  us  to 
dedicate  our  children  to  Him  ?  We  believe,  there- 
fore, there  is  as  much  truth  as  beauty  in  the  passage 
in  which  one  of  the  religious  poets  of  England 
describes  this  touching  rite — 

"In  due  time 
A  day  of  solemn  ceremonial  comes  ; 
When  they,  who  for  this  minor  hold  in  trust 
Rights  that  transcend  the  highest  heritage 
Of  mere  humanity,  present  their  charge 
At  the  baptismal  font.     And  when  the  pure 
And  consecrating  element  hath  cleansed 
The  original  stain,  the  child  is  there  received 
Into  the  second  ark,  Christ's  Church,  witli  trust 
That  he,  from  wrath  redeemed,  therein  shall  float 
Over  the  billows  of  this  troublesome  world 
To  the  fair  land  of  everlasting  life."* 

The  third  point  in  connection  with  this  subject, 
which  I  would  bring  before  you,  is — tJie  manner  in 
zuhich  this  rite  should  be  administered.  The  Church 
regards  as  a  lawful  mode  of  Baptism,  either  Immersion, 
Affusion,  or  pouring — and  Aspersion,  or  sprinkling. 
In  each  of  these  ways  she  declares  it  to  be  equally 
valid.  If  therefore  the  consciences  of  any  of  her  mem- 
bers are  scrupulous  on  this  point,  her  ministers  can 
administer  this  sacrament  in  the  way  they  may 
select.  The  Church  has  decided  that  the  manner  is 
irtdifferent,  for  three  reasons. 

The  first  is,  because  the  word  Baptizo  (BaTrTi^Go,) 
which  we  translate  baptise,  and  which  our  Lord  used 
when  he  gave  the  command — "  Go  teach  all  nations, 
baptizing  {BantiZovr^'C)  them  " — does  not,  necessa- 
rily, mean  to  immerse.     On  the  contrary,  in  many 

•  Wordsworth's  Excursion,  Book  V. 


THE  CHURCH'S  VIEW  OF  INFANT  BAPTISM.      215 

cases  to  translate  it  in  this  way  would  entirely  destroy 
its  meaning.  The  same  is  true  with  regard  to  Bapto 
{BaTTTGo),  from  which  it  is  derived. '^'^  We  will  give  a 
single  example  of  this  result  with  each  of  these 
words. 

In  the  Septuagint — the  Greek  translation  of  the  old 
Testament — Daniel  iv.  30,  in  the  description  of  the 
judgment  which  fell  upon  Nebuchadnezzar,  when  he 
was  "  driven  forth  from  the  abodes  of  men,  and  did 
eat  grass  as  oxen,"  it  is  stated  that  "  his  body  was  wet 
{sftaqri])  with  the  dew  of  heaven."     Here  the  word 

*  "As  it  is  agreed  on  all  hands,  that  the  native  Greeks  are  the 
best  authority  for  the  meaning  of  their  own  language,  we  shall  refer 
the  question  to  them.  We  give  therefore  the  definitions  of  these 
words,  only  from  the  native  Greek  Lexicographers. 

"The  oldest  native  Greek  Lexicographer  is  Hesychius,  who  lived 
in  the  fourth  century  of  the  Christian  Era.  He  gives  only  the  root 
Bapto ;  and  the  only  meaning  he  gives  the  word  is  atitleo,  '  to  draw 
or  pump  water.'  Next  in  order  comes  Suidas,  a  native  Greek,  who 
wrote  in  the  tenth  century.  He  gives  only  the  derivative,  Baptize, 
and  defines  it  by  pluno,  'to  wash.'  Passing  over  the  intermediate 
Greek  Lexicographers,  we  come  down  to  the  present  century,  at  the 
beginning  of  which,  wc  find  Gases,  a  learned  Greelc,  who  with  great 
labor  and  pains  compiled  a  large  and  valuable  Lexicon  of  the  ancient 
Greek  language.  His  book,  in  three  volumes  quarto,  is  a  work  de- 
servedly held  in  high  estimation  by  all,  and  is  generally  used  by 
native  Greeks.  The  following  are  his  definitions  of  Bapto,  and 
Baptizo. 

'  Bapto.         Brecho,  to  luet,  moisten,  bedew. 

Pluno,  to  wash,  (viz.,  clothes.) 

Gemizo,  to  fill. 

Buthizo,  to  dip. 

Antleo,  to  drazti,  to  pump  water. 
•  Baptizo.      Brecho,  to  wet,  moisten,  bedew. 

Pluno,  to  wash. 

Leuo,  to  wash,  to  bathe. 

Antleo,  to  draw,  to  pump  water.^ 
"  These  are  the  definitions  of  a  native  Greek,  and  are  entitled  to 
the  highest  deference,  both  for  his  learning  and  his  ecclesiastical  con- 
nections."    Chopin's  Frimi'ive  Church,  pp.  43,  44. 


2l6       THE  CHURCH'S  VIEW  OF  INFANT  BAPTISM. 

certainly  means  nothing  but  to  zuct  or  to  moisten. 
And  we  would  ask,  which  sounds  most  in  accordance 
with  common  sense,  to  say — "  his  body  was  sprinkled 
with  the  dew  of  heaven" — or,  "his  body  was  im- 
mersed with  the  dew  of  heaven  ?" 

Again — in  the  New  Testament,  John  the  Baptist 
predicting  the  coming  of  our  Lord,  says — "  He  shall 
baptize  [fSaTtriffei)  you  with  the  Holy  Ghost  and  with 
fire."  Now,  translate  this — "  He  shall  immerse  you 
with  the  Holy  Ghost  and  with  fire  " — and  we  at  once 
perceive  the  absurdity.  But  the  prophet  Joel,  when 
referring  to  this  same  event,  (as  St.  Peter  declares, 
"  this  is  that  which  was  spoken  by  the  prophet  Joel," 
Acts  ii.  1 6,)  says — "  I  will  pour  out  my  Spirit  upon 
all  flesh."  This  prophecy,  therefore,  was  first  fulfilled 
on  the  day  of  Pentecost,  Avhen  the  Holy  Ghost  de- 
scended and  rested  on  the  Apostles,  and  afterwards 
when  it  was  given  to  the  Gentiles  also  ;  and  we  are 
told — "  they  of  the  circumcision  were  astonished, 
because  the  gift  of  the  Holy  Ghost  was  po7ired  out 
upon  the  Gentiles  also."  This  is  the  only  direct 
reference  in  the  New-  Testament  to  the  mode  in  which 
baptism  of  any  kind  was  performed,  and  it  certainly 
argues  nothing  in  favor  of  immersion.* 

A  second  reason  for  this  decision  of  the  Church 
is^because  it  is  not  in  accordance  with  our  Lord's 
custom,  to  enjoin  upon  his  disciples  any  duty  or  rite 

*  It  is  of  course  impossible  in  tliis  brief  lecture  to  enter  into  any 
particular  discussion  of  the  meaning  of  these  terms.  The  reader  will 
find,  hov^ever,  in  Ckapin's  Primitive  Church,  a  critical  examination 
of  all  the  places  both  in  the  Old  and  New  Testaments,  in  which  the 
words  Bapto  and  Bap'izo  are  used,  (p.  44-52.)  The  result  is,  that 
out  of  twenty-three  cases  in  which  Bapto  occurs,  it  has  the  sense  of 
immersion  but  twice ;  and  that  in  seventy  places  where  Baptizo  is 
found,  there  is  not  one  where  it  means  to  immerse. 


THE  CHURCH'S  VIEW  OF  INFANT  BAPTISM.     2 1 7 

which  cannot  be  universally  put  in  practice.  Were 
immersion,  therefore,  absolutely  necessary,  you  per- 
ceive that  in  some  situations  and  climates  it  would  be 
impossible  to  receive  it  Suppose,  for  instance,  that 
a  person  should  be  lying  on  a  bed  of  sickness,  with 
life  waning  away,  yet  feeling  the  earnest  desire,  before 
death  comes,  to  be  admitted  into  the  Church  of 
Christ.  That  privilege  must,  in  this  case,  be  denied 
him.  He  must  die  an  alien  from  the  fold,  if  we 
believe  that  our  Lord  has  appointed  but  one  form  in 
which  the  Sacrament  of  Baptism  is  valid.  But  all 
His  commands,  on  the  contrary,  bear  the  stamp  of 
universality.  The  Holy  Communion  of  His  body 
and  blood  can  be  administered  in  all  climates,  and  to 
any  one,  however  enfeebled  by  sickness,  and  so  we 
believe  can  baptism.  Our  Lord  never  directs 
any  thing  which  it  would  be  impossible  to 
obey. 

The  third  reason  is — because  affusion  and  sprinkling 
have  been  both  practised  and  recognized  as  valid  in 
all  ages  of  the  Church.  It  is  not  probable,  that  John 
the  Baptist,  when  "  there  went  out  to  him  Jerusalem, 
and  all  Judea,  and  all  the  region  round  about  Jordan, 
and  were  baptized  of  him  in  Jordan,"  administered 
this  rite  by  immersion,  for  time  would  scarcely  have 
been  found,  to  allow  so  slow  a  process  to  be  so  often 
repeated  to  these  multitudes.  Many,  too,  must  have 
come  there  unprovided  with  proper  garments  for  this 
purpose.  And  these  same  objections  will  apply 
against  immersion  being  the  form  used  in  any  of 
those  cases,  in  which,  under  the  preaching  of  the 
Apostles,  large  numbers  at  once  submitted  to  the 
faith.     Rivers  and  lakes  could  not  always  have  been 


2l8     THE  CHURCH'S  VIEW  OF  INFANT  BAPTISM. 

at  hand,  nor  a  sufficiency  of  water  have  been  easily 
obtained.  * 

The  probability  seems  to  be  that  all  three  methods 
were  practised  in  the  Early  Church.  In  the  hot 
countries  of  the  East,  where  men  went  lightly  clad, 
and  bathing  was  often  used,  it  was  natural  that  im- 
mersion should  frequently  be  the  manner  of  baptism. 
As,  however,  the  faith  extended  into  the  colder 
climates  of  the  North  and  West,  affusion  and  sprink- 
ling were  more  generally  resorted  to,  as  agreeing 
better  with  local  circumstances.  Thus  St.  Cyprian, 
even  when  he  declares  against  the  validity  of  hereti- 
cal Baptism,  defends  that  performed  by  sprinkling. 
"  For   the    contagion   of  sin  " — says  he — "  was  not 

*  "  After  the  pre.aching  of  St.  Peter,  it  is  stated  that  3000  were 
baptized,  and  that  these  were  added  to  the  Church  in  one  day.  Now 
the  immersion  of  3000  persons  in  so  short  a  time,  carries  with  it  so 
great  an  air  of  improbability,  that  we  must  be  excused,  if  we  suspect 
that  some  more  rapid  mode  was  adopted  for  their  baptism.  Reflect 
upon  this  one  moment  : — Peter's  sermon  began  (as  we  are  told)  after 
the  third  hour  of  the  day  ;  that  is,  nine  o'clock  in  the  morning.  His 
addresses  occupied  a  considerable  time  ;  for,  besides  the  sketch  given 
in  the  Acts,  it  is  said  that  '  with  many  more  words  he  exhorted  them  ' 
— which  are  not  recorded.  Now,  it  was  not  until  after  all  this,  that 
the  Baptisms  began — and  the  time  remaining  to  the  evening,  could 
scarcely  have  been  more  than  eight  hours.  Dividing,  therefore,  the 
3000  persons,  there  would  be  375  to  receive  baptism  in  each  of  those 
eight  hours — a  number  so  great  that  it  is  difficult  to  imagine  how  they 
could  possibly  have  been  immersed. 

"  But  again  ;  in  the  case  of  the  jailor  at  Philippi,  we  have  an 
instance  of  a  whole  family,  suddenly  baptized,  and  this,  too,  at  mid- 
night. The  whole  matter  was  transacted  in  a  very  limited  time,  and 
we  cannot,  without  violence,  bring  ourselves  to  believe  in  the  reality 
of  such  a  thing  as  the  mstant  arousing  from  slumber  of  a  whole  family 
and  the  immediate  plunging  of  them  in  the  cold  element  of  baptism, 
to  say  nothing  of  the  improbability  of  there  being  on  the  spot,  and  at 
the  time,  a  sufficiency  of  pure  water,  and  suitable  vessels  to  meet  the 
emergency." — Staunton's  Church  Dictionary,  Art.  "Immersion." 


THE  CHURCH'S  VIEW  OF  INFANT  BAPTISM.      219 

washed  away  as  the  filth  of  the  body  is,  by  a  carnal 
and  secular  washing.  There  was  no  need  of  a  lake 
or  other  such  like  helps  to  wash  and  cleanse  it." 
And  he  proves  the  lawfulness  of  aspersion  from 
Ezekiel  xxxvi.  25 — "  I  will  sprinkle  clean  water  upon 
you,  and  ye  shall  be  clean.'"^  The  manner  was 
conformed  to  the  climate,  and  the  situation  of  the 
recipient. 

The  mistake  in  all  this  matter  is,  that  men  have 
not  distinguished  what  is  essential  from  what  is  non- 
essential. The  essentials  in  baptism  are — the  proper 
person  to  administer  it — the  use  of  water — and  the 
name  of  the  Trinity  in  which  it  is  applied. t  Other 
things  may  be  regulated  by  circumstances.  The  case 
is  precisely  the  same  with  the  Eucharist.  This,  at 
its  first  institution  by  our  Lord,  was  administered  in 
a  very  different  way  from  what  it  now  is;  but  we 
have  discriminated,  and  retained  what  is  essential. 
And  why  not  do  so  with  Baptism  ?  To  make  the 
mode  of  Baptism  the  distinctive  feature  of  a  sect,  is  as 
reasonable  as  it  would  be,  now  to  form  a  new  party 
in  the  Christian  world,  to  be  called  "  the  Communion- 
ists,"  who  should  sever  themselves  from  the  Catholic 
Church  on  the  ground  that  the  Communion  is  not 
administered  in  a  valid  manner,  unless  received  pre- 
cisely as  it  was  by  the  Apostles  of  our  Lord,  reclining 
on  couches  around  a  table,  and  in  an  upper  chamber. 
The  fact  that  the  whole  Christian  Church  for  eighteen 
centuries   had   believed    differently,    would,    in    this 

*  Epist.  76. 

t  "  It  cannot  appear  that  the  child  was  baptized  with  water,  in  the 
name  of  the  Father,  and  of  the  Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Ghost  (which  are 
essential  par  Is  of  baptism.'' ') — Rubric  at  the  end  of  Form  for  private 
baptism  of  children. 

\ 


2  20       THE  CHURCH'S  VIEW  OF  INFANT  BAPTISM. 

age  of  new  discoveries,  be  a  matter  of  no  import- 
ance. 

There  is,  however,  a  much  more  summary  way  of 
disposing  of  the  question.  Suppose  we  were  to 
allow,  that  in  the  early  Church  in  the  East,  immer- 
sion was  always  used,  does  it  prove  that  the  Church 
is  now  bound  to  continue  it  ?  Certainly  not.  There 
is  nothing  in  this  manner  essential  to  the  existence  of 
the  Sacrament.  This  is  merely  a  practice,  resting  on 
no  express  command,  and  involving  no  doctrine  or 
point  of  faith.  The  only  difference  about  the  manner 
is,  whether  this  or  one  of  the  other  two  ways  is  most 
significant  of  spiritual  purification.  It  is  one  of  those 
things  which  the  Church  has  a  right  to  alter  and 
adapt  to  the  changing  circumstances  of  the  world. 
And  the  Church  general  has  long  since  adopted 
aspersion  as  the  mode  of  baptism.  A  striking  in- 
stance of  this  same  power  of  altering  the  ma?iner  in 
which  rites  are  administered,  is  furnished  by  the 
history  of  the  Passover.  The  Jews,  at  first,  by  the 
express  command  of  God,  were  to  receive  this,  "  with 
their  loins  girded,  their  shoes  on  their  feet,  and  their 
staff  in  their  hand,"  as  those  who  eat  in  haste.  But 
when  settled  in  their  own  land,  they  seem  to  have 
totally  changed  the  mode — to  have  added  many  new 
rites  to  it — and  to  have  partaken  of  it,  reclining  on 
couches.  Yet  our  Lord  sanctioned  this  by  His  example. 
And  has  not  the  Christian  Church  this  same  power  ? 

Such  is  precisely  the  view  given  by  Bishop  Burnet, 
when  discussing  Art.  XX.,  "  The  Church  hath  power 
to  decree  rites  or  ceremonies."  He  even  gives  this 
very  case  of  Baptism,  as  one  of  his  illustrations.  His 
words  are — "  In  matters  that  are  merely  ritual,  the 


THE  CHURCH'S  VIEW  OF  INFANT  BAPTISM.    221 

State  of  mankind  on  different  climates  and  ages  is 
apt  lo  vary ;  and  the  same  thing  that  in  one  scene  of 
human  nature  may  look  grave,  and  seem  fit  for  any 
society,  may  in  another  age  look  light,  and  dissipate 
men's  thoughts.  It  is  also  evident  there  is  not  a 
system  of  rules  given  in  the  New  Testament  about 
all  these :  and  yet  a  due  method  in  them  is  necessary 
to  maintain  the  order  and  decency  that  become 
divine  things.  This  seems  to  be  a  part  of  the  Gospel 
liberty,  that  it  is  not  a  *  law  of  ordinances  ;'  these 
things  being  left  to  be  varied  according  to  the  diver- 
sities of  mankind Though  a  kiss  of  peace, 

and  an  order  of  deaconesses,  were  the  practices  of  the 
Apostolical  time  ;  yet  when  the  one  gave  occasion  to 
raillery  and  the  other  to  scandal,  all  the  world  was, 
and  still  is,  satisfied  with  the  reasons  of  letting  both 
fall."  After  speaking  of  the  changes  made  by  the 
Jewish  Church  in  their  rites,  he  says — "  If  then  such 
a  liberty  was  allowed  in  so  limited  a  religion,  it  seems 
highly  suitable  to  the  sublimer  state  of  Christian 
liberty,  that  there  should  be  room  left  for  such  ap- 
pointments or  alterations  as  the  different  state  of  time 
and  places  should  require.  In  hotter  countries,  for 
instance,  there  is  no  danger  in  dipping;  but  if  it  is 
otherwise  in  colder  climates,  then,  since  '  mercy  is 
better  than  even  sacrifice,'  a  more  sparing  use  may 
be  made  of  water ;  aspersion  may  answer  the  true  end 
of  baptism^  It  is  of  course  to  be  observed,  that 
these  changes  can  only  be  made  in  things  merely 
ritual,  and  by  the  authority  of  the  Catholic  Church. 

The  last  point  which  we  would  briefly  bring  for- 
ward is — the  place  in  which  the  Sacrament  of 
Baptism  should  be  administered.     This  is  declared  by 


22  2      THE  CHURCH'S  VIEW  OF  INFANT  BAPTISM. 

our  regulations  to  be  in  the  Church.  The  Rubric 
states  that  "  the  Godfathers  and  Godmothers,  and 
the  people  with  the  children,  must  be  ready  at  the 
font,  either  immediately  after  the  last  lesson  at  Morn- 
ing Prayer,  or  else  immediately  after  the  last  lesson 
at  Evening  Prayer,  as  the  minister,  at  his  discretion, 
shall  appoint."  And  the  minister  is  also  enjoined,  to 
warn  the  people,  "that  without  great  cause  and 
necessity,  they  procure  not  their  children  to  be  bap- 
tized at  home  in  their  houses." 

And  this  surely  is  right — that  here  at  the  Font,  in 
the  house  of  God,  these  solemn  vows  should  be  made, 
which  devote  your  children  to  tlie  Lord.  Thus  is  it 
shown,  that  we  all  are  one  body,  united  by  a  common 
tie  when  we  enter  our  Master's  temple — that  here 
at  least,  before  His  altar,  all  worldly  distinctions  are 
unknown.  "  If  baptisms  always  took  place  on  Sun- 
days or  holydays,  and  in  the  public  service,  and  at 
every  poor  child's  baptism  the  rich  did  not  sit  in 
their  pews,  as  if  it  did  not  concern  them  and  were  a 
weariness,  but  rose,  and  knelt,  and  joined  in  the  ser- 
vice with  readiness  and  fervency;  experience  in 
certain  places  has  shown  that  a  good  feeling  has  been 
generated  among  the  poor  far  beyond  what  seemed 
likely  from  such  a  trifle ;  and  of  course  a  more  right 
feeling  would  be  produced  among  the  rich,  who  in 
such  cases  are  far  more  deficient  in  it  than  tlie  poor."* 

The  severity  of  the  climate,  however,  sickness,  or 
other  causes  which  cannot  be  enumerated,  may  often 
furnish  that  "  great  cause  and  necessity  "  which  will 
justify  the  minister  in  performing  this  service  in 
private.  Yet,  in  such  cases,  you  will  perceive  at 
*  Faber's  "  Churchman's  Politics,"  p.  44. 


THE  CHURCH'S  VIEW  OF  INFANT  BAPTISM.      223 

once  that  it  should  be  private.  The  administration 
of  this  solemn  Sacrament  is  surely  not  a  time  for 
gathering  together  your  worldly  friends,  and  giving 
loose  to  festivity  and  mirth.  When  the  young  im- 
mortal is  signed  with  the  sign  of  the  Cross,  and  the 
influences  of  the  Spirit  are  invoked  to  uphold  it  in 
its  future  life,  is  it  the  time  or  place  for  frivolity  and 
amusement  ?  When  solemn  words  are  spoken,  and 
the  pomps  and  vanities  of  this  sinful  earth  are  re- 
nounced, shall  worldliness  in  that  hour  have  gathered 
there  to  hold  its  carnival  ?  Should  there  thus  be 
furnished  at  the  very  moment,  a  practical  denial  of 
all  the  lips  are  uttering  ?  Should  this  be  made 
merely  an  excuse  for  excitement  and  gayety  ?  No, 
brethren,  whatever  else  you  may  do,  at  least  bring 
not  the  Sacraments  of  the  Church  into  your  homes, 
except  with  awed  and  chastened  feelings.  The  hum- 
ble prayer  and  the  heartfelt  petition  for  grace  to 
fulfil  your  fearful  responsibilities,  might  well  befit  a 
scene  like  this — not  the  light  jest  or  the  empty  laugh. 
Remember,  with  whom  you  are  dealing  in  that  rite 
— tliat  He  is  not  mocked — that  He  marks  the  feelings 
with  which  you  kneel  before  him — and  that  this 
service  concerns  the  eternal  well-being  of  a  young 
spirit,  which  is  thus  setting  out  for  immortal  life. 

We  have  thus,  my  brethren,  endeavored  to  bring 
before  you  in  the  narrow  limits  of  this  single  Lecture, 
a  subject  which  might  well  fill  a  volume.  You  will 
perceive,  however,  even  from  these  brief  observations, 
the  spiritual  force  of  the  question — "  Is  it  well  with 
the  child  ?"  If  it  be  still  uncleansed  by  the  waters 
of  baptism,  I  tell  you,  it  is  not  well  with  it.  It  is  an 
"  alien    from    the  commonwealth  of  Israel,"    and    a 


224     THE  CHURCH'S  VIEW  OF  INFANT  BAPTISM: 

stranger  to  the  Christian  Church.  Are  you  willing 
that  thus  it  should  remain  ?  Shall  that  being  around 
whom  your  fondest  affections  are  clustering,  be  sent 
forth  into  a  stormy  and  sinful  world,  without  being 
fortified  by  the  aid  of  God's  Spirit — feeling  as  if  no 
obligation  was  resting  on  him — and  cut  off  from  all 
union  with  that  holy  fellowship,  which  comprehends 
the  just  on  earth  and  the  angels  in  Heaven  ?  Are 
you  willing,  that  through  your  remissness  tliat  link 
should  be  wanting  which  binds  him  to  the  throne  of 
the  Eternal  ?  Who  can  tell  the  momentous  results 
which  may  ensue  from  his  being  thus  debarred  ? 
Separated  from  the  nursing  care  of  the  Church,  whose 
object  is,  to  have  her  children  first  in  infancy  brought 
within  her  fold — then  in  maturer  years  confirmed  in 
this  grace — and  thus  by  regular  steps  advanced  to 
partake  of  the  communion  of  their  Lord's  death — he 
may  feel  himself  enabled  to  live  without  restraint  or 
care  for  these  things.  Thus,  the  world  claims  him 
as  its  own,  and  the  claim  is  allowed.  He  yields  to 
temptation — resigns  himself  to  its  embrace — lives  in 
sin,  and  dies  without  hope.  And  when  at  length  he 
has  risen  from  his  lowly  grave,  only  to  find  himself  a 
partaker  in  "the  resurrection  of  damnation,"  and  you 
and  he  meet  once  more  before  the  last  dread  tribu- 
nal ;  as  you  stand  up  to  receive  your  sentence,  per- 
chance from  the  ranks  of  the  lost  there  may  start 
forth  one,  whom  in  speechless  dismay  you  recognize 
as  him  whom  you  have  nurtured  on  earth ;  and  as 
he  points  to  you,  the  author  of  his  being,  his  familiar 
tones  thrill  in  your  ear,  when  he  shrieks  forth  to  the 
Judge — "This,  this,  O  Lord,  is  he,  through  whose 


THE  CHURCH'S  VIE  W  OF  INFA NT  BAPTISM.     225 

remissness  I  must  inherit  the  horrors  of  the  second 
death  !  Through  his  neglect  it  happened,  that  I  was 
not  numbered  with  Thy  Church,  or  baptized  with 
Thy  Spirit,  ere  the  cares  of  life  gathered  around  me, 
and  now,  I  am  a  castaway — undone  forever  !" 


VII. 
THE  MORAL  TRAINING  OF  THE  CHURCH. 

I  love  the  Church — the  Holy  Church, 

That  o'er  our  life  presides. 
The  Birth,  the  Bridal,  and  the  Grave, 

And  many  an  hour  besides  ! 
Be  mine,  through  life,  to  live  in  her, 

And  when  the  Lord  shall  call, 
To  die  in  her — the  spouse  of  Christ, 

The  Mother  of  us  all. 

Rev.  A.  C.  Coxe, 

Our  faith  appeals  to  the  heart  as  much  as  to  the 
intellect.  Its  object  is  not  to  inculcate  a  set  of  abstract 
truths,  but  to  render  us  "  meet  to  be  partakers  of  the 
inheritance  of  the  saints  in  light."  Among  the 
changes  and  trials  of  this  lower  world,  we  are  to 
exercise  our  hope  and  patience — the  grace  of  God 
being  our  strength — the  prizes  of  eternity,  the  re- 
wards to  which  we  look  forward.  Thus,  as  this  life 
wears  away,  we  shall  feel  that  in  our  spiritual  warfare 
we  are  going  on  from"  "  conquering  to  conquer  "  — 
mastering  the  evil  of  our  nature — and,  by  self-denial 
and  self-discipline,  fitting  ourselves  hereafter  to 
mingle  with  the  children  of  immortality.  Each  year 
will  witness  some  new  advance  in  the  divine  life — 
some  new  acquisition  in  holiness,  until,  as  our  sun 
declines  towards  the  West,  we  can  calmly  watch  its 
setting,  being  confident  that  the  night  of  death  which 
gathers  around  us,  shall  soon  give  place  to  a  glorious 
awakening. 


THE  MORAL    TRAINING  OF  THE   CHURCH.        227 

It  is  to  produce  this  result  that  the  whole  system 
of  the  Church  is  intended.  She  would  educate  the 
soul  for  Eternity.  She  is  indeed  the  Churchman's 
guide  through  life — at  once  his  instructor  and  his 
own  familiar  friend,  who  meets  him  at  every  change 
and  turn,  with  words  of  warning  and  of  comfort,  and 
thus  systematically  and  unceasingly  exerts  her 
influence  to  prepare  him  for  that  rest  which  awaits 
the  just  in  the  Paradise  of  God.     This  then  is  THE 

MORAL  TRAINING  OF  THE  CHURCH,  with  regard  tO 
which  I  would  this  evening  address  you.  I  wish  to 
show,  that  no  emergency  can  happen  to  us  in  this 
world,  for  which  the  Church  has  not  provided — no 
possible  condition  of  life,  from  the  cradle  to  the 
grave,  which  she  has  not  anticipated,  or  where  she 
is  found  wanting  in  her  power  to  convey  spiritual 
aid.  Thus  it  is,  that  we  are  enabled  to  attain  that 
privilege,  for  which  the  kingly  Poet  of  Israel  longed 
— "  to  dwell  in  the  house  of  the  Lord  all  the  days  of 
our  life,  to  behold  the  fair  beauty  of  the  Lord,  and 
to  inquire  in  his  temple." 

Let  us  begin  then  with  the  infant,  whose  reason 
and  senses  are  just  unfolding  to  a  perception  of  the 
world  it  has  entered,  and  what  course  does  the 
Church  pursue  ?  Does  she  disregard  or  scorn  tl;at 
feeble  being,  as  it  passes  through  the  months  of  wail- 
ing infancy  and  the  years  of  helpless  childhood  ? 
Does  she  repel  it  from  her  fold,  telling  it  to  live  on, 
"  an  alien  from  the  commonwealth  of  Israel,  and  a 
stranger  from  the  covenants  of  promise,"  until  the 
fresh  dew  of  life  is  gone,  and  the  beauty  of  its  early- 
years  departed  ?  Does  she  refuse  to  notice  that 
young  immortal,  until  in  maturer  years  it  can  apply 


2  28  THE    MORAL     TRAINING 

for  admission  at  her  gates,  coming  fresh  from  the 
world  as  a  heathen  would  do,  who  had  not  till  then 
heard  the  news  of  redeeming  love  ?  Does  she  pro- 
claim, that  by  nature  that  being,  about  whom  your 
warmest  affections  are  gathered,  is  born  in  sin,  yet 
without  offering  any  remedy  to  blot  out  the  stain  ? 
Such  is  by  no  means  the  Church's  want  of  care  for 
little  children.  She  claims  them  even  from  their 
birth,  and  gathers  them  at  once  into  her  fold,  that 
from  the  first  the  promises  of  the  Gospel  may  be 
pledged  to  them,  and  they  share  in  those  rich  bless- 
ings which  are  offered  to  her  members. 

The  first  Rubric  in  our  Prayer  Book  which  relates 
to  the  infant,  is  one  for  the  guidance  of  the  minister 
of  the  Parish,  directing  him  "  often  to  admonish  the 
people,  that  they  defer  not  the  baptism  of  their  child- 
ren   unless    upon    a    great   and    reasonable 

cause."  As  the  children  of  the  Israelites  at  eight 
days  old  were  made  members  of  the  Jewish  Church, 
and  thus  entitled  to  the  covenant  promises  which 
God  had  made  to  the  nation,  so  are  your  children  by 
baptism  to  be  received  into  the  fold  of  the  Christian 
Church.  When,  therefore,  the  child  is  presented 
before  the  altar,  the  appeal  is  made  to  those  present 
— "  I  beseech  you  to  call  upon  God  the  Father, 
through  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  that  of  His  bounteous 
mercy.  He  will  grant  to  this  child  that  which  by  nature 
he  cannot  have  ;  that  he  may  be  baptized  with  water 
and  the  Holy  Ghost,  and  received  into  Christ's  Holy 
Church,  and  be  made  a  living  member  of  the  same." 

And  this  is  done.  The  water  is  poured  forth — the 
sign  of  the  Cross*  is  impressed  upon  the  forehead  of 

*  Among  the  refinements  of  modern  wisdom  is  a  dread  of  the  Sign 


OF    THE    CHURCH.  229 

that  unconscious  being,  "  in  token  that  hereafter   he 
shall  not  be  ashamed   to  confess  the  faith  of  Christ 

of  the  Cross.  Are  we  ashamed  of  it  ?  Have  we  forgotten  the 
example  of  St.  Paul,  and  ceased  to  "glory  in  the  cross  of  Jesus 
Christ  ?"  Such  was  not  by  any  means  the  view  of  the  Primitive 
Christians.  "  When  heathens,'' says  Hooker,  "  despised  the  Christian 
religion  because  of  the  sufferings  of  Jesus  Christ,  the  Fathers,  to  testify 
how  little  such  contumelies  and  contempts  prevailed  with  them,  chose 
ratherthe  sign  of  the  Cross,  than  any  other  outward  mark,  whereby  the 
world  might  most  easily  discern  always  what  they  were."  (Eccles. 
Polity,  book  v.)  Tertullian,  in  the  second  century,  testifies,  that  on 
all  occasions  they  used  this  sign.  Deo  Coron.  Millt.  c.  iii.)  It  was 
made  upon  those  persons  who  were  admitted  as  Catechumens,  {Bing. 
Orig.  Eccles.  lib.  x.  c.  i.  sec.  3.,  and  c.  ii.  sec.  8,)  and  signed  upon 
their  foreheads  at  the  time  of  baptism.  (Palmer'' s  Orig.  Lit.  v.  ii.  p. 
190.)  Thus  they  would  manifest — St.  Augustine  says — "  that  so  far 
are  they  from  blushing  at  the  Cross,  they  do  not  conceal  this  instru-  * 
ment  of  redemption,  but  carry  it  on  their  brows."     {In  Psalm  cxli.) 

It  was  this  spirit  which  induced  our  forefathers  every  where  to  set 
up  the  sign  of  the  Cross — in  their  Churches — their  houses — by  the 
wayside — and  at  the  fountain  —  that  as  the  weary  traveller  stopped 
to  drink,  he  might  have  before  him  the  emblem  of  the  Cnicified. 
There  may  sometimes  have  been  superstition  mingled  with  this,  but 
was  not  even  superstition  better  than  the  refined  indiiference  of  our 
day?  In  a  treatise  on  the  Ten  Commandments,  entitled  ^^  Dives  et 
Pauper,''''  and  printed  at  Westminster  by  Wynken  de  Worde,  A.  D. 
1496,  the  real  and  pious  object  of  erecting  the  Cross  by  the  road-side 
is  thus  expressively  assigned — "For  this  reason  ben  Crosses  by  ye 
waye,  that  whan  folke  passynge  see  the  Crosses,  they  sholde  thynke 
on  Hym  that  deyed  on  ye  Crosse,  and  worshyppe  Hym  above  all 
thynge." 

But  we  are  told,  "it  is  Popish."  Are  we  then  to  give  up  every 
Primitive  practice  which  the  Romish  Church  has  retained  ?  If  so,  we 
shall  soon  be  worse  off  than  our  dissenting  brethren.  The  Church  of 
England  in  one  of  her  canons  thus  vindicates  her  retention  of  this 
sign-- 

"  Following  the  steps  of  our  most  worthy  King,  because  he  therein 
followe'h  the  rules  of  the  Scripture,  and  the  practice  of  the  Primitive 
Church,  we  do  commend  to  all  true  members  of  the  Church  of  Eng- 
land these  our  directions  and  observations  ensuing  :  the  honor  and 
dignity  of  the  name  of  the  Cross  begat  a  reverent  estimation  even  in 
the  Apostles'  time,  (for  aught  that  is  known  to  the  contrary,)  of  the 
sign  of  the  Cross,  which  the  Christians  shortly  after  used  in  all  their 


230  THE    MORAL    TRAINING 

crucified,  and  manfully  to  fight  under  His  banner, 
against  sin,  the  world,  and  the  devil ;  and  to  continue 
Christ's  faithful  soldier  and  servant  unto  his  life's 
end."     Thus   he  becomes  a   member  of  the  visible 

actions.  The  use  of  this  sign  in  Baptism  was  held  by  the  Primitive' 
Church,  as  well  by  the  Greeks  as  the  Latins,  with  one  consent  and 
great  applause.  This  continual  and  general  use  of  the  sign  of  the 
Cross  is  evident  by  the  testimonies  of  the  ancient  fathers. 

"It  must  be  confessed,  that  in  process  of  time,  the  sign  of  the  Cross 
was  greatly  abused,  in  the  Church  of  Rome.  But  the  abuse  of 
A  THING  DOES  NOT  TAKE  AWAY  THE  LAWFUL  USE  OF  IT.  Nay,  SO  far 
was  it  from  the  purpose  of  the  Church  of  England  to  forsake  and 
reject  the  Churches  of  Italy,  France,  Spain,  Germany,  or  any  such 
like  Churches  in  all  things  which  they  held  and  practised,  that  as  the 
Apology  of  the  Church  of  England  confesseth,  it  doth  with  reverence 
'  retain  those  ceremonies  which  do  neither  endamage  the  Church  of 
God,  nor  offend  the  minds  of  sol)er  men  ;  and  only  departeth  from 
them  in  those  particular  points  wherein  they  were  fallen  both  from 
themselves  in  their  ancient  integrity,  and  from  the  Apostolical  Churches 
which  were  their  first  founders. 

"  The  sign  of  the  Cross  in  Baptism  being  thus  purged  from  all 
Popish  superstitions  and  error,  and  reduced  in  the  Church  of  England 
to  the  primary  institution  of  it,  upon  those  rules  of  doctrine  concern- 
ing things  indifferent,  which  are  consonant  to  the  word  of  God,  and 
the  judgments  of  all  the  ancient  fathers,  we  hold  it  the  part  of  every 
private  man,  both  minister  and  other,  reverently  to  retain  the  true 
use  of  it  prescribed  by  public  authority."     Canon  xxx. 

Let  us  then  continue  to  glory  in  the  Cross.  I^t  it  be  elevated  on 
our  Churches,  to  show  a  heedless  world  the  object  of  those  conse- 
crated buildings.  Surely,  this  emblem  of  our  common  faith — glitter- 
ing in  the  sunshine,  and  immovable  in  the  storm  —  is  more  appropriate 
on  our  pinnacles  and  spires,  than  the  light  vane,  turning  to  every 
point  of  the  compass,  as  if  to  teach,  that  the  minds  of  those  who  wor- 
ship below  are  "  carried  about  with  every  wind  of  doctrine." 

"  And  we  will  not  conceal  the  precious  Cross, 
Like  men  ashamed.     The  sun  with  its  first  smile 
Shall  greet  that  symbol  crowning  the  low  pile. 
And  the  fresh  air  of  '  incense-breathing  mom  ' 
Shall  wooingly  embrace  it  ;  and  green  moss 
Creep  round  its  arms  through  centuries  unborn." 

Wordsworth^ s  Eccles.  Sonnets. 


OF    THE    CHURCH.  23 1 

Church.     Her  responsibihties  are  resting  on  him — 
her  blessings  belong  to  him. 

*'  A  few  calm  words  of  faith  and  prayer, 
A  few  bright  drops  of  holy  dew, 
Have  worked  a  wonder  there 
Earth's  charmers  never  knew. 

For  there  the  holy  Cross  was  sign'd, 
And  the  young  soldier  duly  sworn, 

With  true  and  fearless  mind, 
To  serve  the  Virgin-born,"  * 

The  Church  in  this  way  offers  to  take  your  chil- 
dren, and  by  her  spiritual  influence  to  educate  them 
for  the  Lord.  While  you  would  be  compelled  to 
send  them  out  to  encounter  the  snares  of  a  sinful 
world,  unaided  by  Divine  Grace,  she  steps  forward, 
and  like  Pharaoh's  daughter,  rescues  them  from  this 
death,  adopts  them  for  her  own,  and  then  gives  them 
back  to  you,  to  nurse  for  her  sake.  Thus  it  is  that 
she  obeys  that  injunction  of  her  Lord,  when  he  said — 
"  Suffer  the  httle  children  to  come  unto  me,  and 
forbid  them  not;  for  of  such  is  the  kingdom  of 
heaven."  And  when  he  declared  again — "  Whoso- 
ever shall  receive  one  such  little  child  in  my  name 
receiveth  me."  She  knows  that  He  not  only  gives 
great  encouragement,  but  also  promises  a  reward  to 
those  who  thus  dedicate  their  children  to  Him.  She 
knows,  too,  that  this  solemn  Sacrament  is  not  merely 
an  outward  form,  but  also  "  a  visible  sign  of  an  in- 
ward and  spiritual  grace,  given  unto  us."  Therefore 
it  is,  that  in  Scripture,  when  Baptism  by  water  is 
mentioned,  the  influences  of  the  Holy  Ghost  are  so 
often   connected    with    it.t     She   trusts,    then,    that 

*  Keble's  Christian  Year. 

t  Matt.  iu.  II,  John  iii.  5,  Eph.  v.  26,  Titus,  ii.  4-7,  i  Pet.  iii.  21, 
I  John,  V.  6-8. 


232  THE    MORAL    TRAINING 

Divine  Grace  does  descend  upon  that  young  candi- 
date for  immortality — that  the  germs  of  hohness  are 
implanted  there — which  may  afterwards,  as  the 
faculties  expand,  and  life  goes  on,  be  cherished  into 
confirmed  godliness.  Thus  she  commences  life  with 
the  children  committed  to  her  care.* 

Now  look  at  the  second  step.  The  Church  still 
keeps  her  hold  upon  that  child,  and,  as  its  reason 
strengthens,  has  provided  her  Catechism,  with  which 
its  training  is  to  be  commenced.  She  does  not  send 
it  forth  to  feed  in  "  strange  pastures,"  or  to  attempt, 
in  the  highways  and  byways  of  this  busy  world,  to 

*  "  In  ancient  times  men  had  Holy  Baptism  continually  in  their 
thoughts.  They  could  scarcely  speak  or  write  on  any  religious  subject 
without  the  discourse  turning  on  Baptism  at  last.  Children  were 
educated  simply  as  baptized  children.  They  were  taught  that  things 
were  right  or  wrong  in  proportion  as  they  affected  the  Baptismal  vow. 
Sins  were  considered  more  or  less  heinous  as  they  were  supposed  to 
stain  Baptismal  purity.  Baptism  was  to  them  all  in  all  ;  because  it 
was  there  they  found  the  cross  of  Christ  set  up." — Faber  on  "  The 
Prayer  Book  a  Safeguard,''^  p.  8. 

"  Christian  education  is  the  education  of  a  baptized  soul.  Now  it 
is  not  too  much  to  say,  that  there  are  very  few  of  us  who  give  this 
prominence  to  Baptism  in  the  education  of  our  children.  The  little 
ones  tell  us,  that  they  were  made  in  their  Baptism  '  members  of  Christ, 
children  of  God,  and  inheritors  of  the  Kingdom  of  Heaven  ;'  and  more- 
over they  '  heartily  thank  God  their  Heavenly  Father  that  he  hath 
called  them  to  this  state  of  salvation.'  Yet  we  educate  them  as  if 
we  did  not  believe  a  word  of  all  this.  Alas  !  many  among  us  do  not 
believe  it.  We  bring  them  up  as  if  they  were  one  day  to  be  Chris- 
tians, not  as  if  they  were  so  already The  Church,  when 

she  educates  her  children  in  the  Catechism,  is  ever  teaching  them  to 
look  back.  We,  on  the  contrary,  are  always  making  them  lookforward. 
She  gives  them  great  thoughts,  and  tries  to  make  them  careful,  jealous, 
and  obedient,  because  they  are  Christians.  We  educate  their  minds, 
and  inform  them  with  high  principles  of  action,  because  they  may  be 
Christians,  and  ought  to  be  Christians.  In  a  word,  with  the  Church, 
Baptism  is  a  gift  and  a  power  :  with  us  it  is  a  theory  and  a  notion." 
Faber  on  "  The  Catechism,^'  -p.  13. 


OF  THE   CHURCH.  233 

gather  that  knowledge  which  can  make  us  wise  unto 
salvation.  She  furnishes  it  with  aliment  for  the 
intellect  as  well  as  for  the  heart.  As  it  was  enjoined 
upon  the  Sponsors  at  the  time  of  baptism,  that  "  the 
infant  be  taught,  as  soon  as  he  shall  be  able  to  learn, 
what  a  solemn  vow,  promise,  and  profession  he  hath 
made  by  them,"  so  the  Church  provides  the  means 
at  an  early  day  of  beginning  this  work.  He  is  to  be 
"  instructed  in  the  Church  Catechism  set  forth  for 
that  purpose." 

And  how  admirable  is  every  portion  of  this  little 
formulary !  While  so  short  that  the  young  child  can 
commit  it  to  memory,  and  so  simple  that  its  meaning 
can  be  easily  explained  and  learned,  it  is  at  the  sam€ 
time  so  comprehensive  an  outline  of  religion  that  it- 
familiarizes  the  mind  with  all  its  cardinal  truths. 
Neither  is  there  anything  dim  or  vague  in  the  in- 
struction which  it  imparts.  All  is  plain  and  practical. 
The  opening  questions  naturally  lead  the  child  to 
speak  of  its  baptism — the  privileges  and  obligations 
of  which  are  accordingly  explained.  Then  follow  the 
Articles  of  the  Creed,  which  it  is  required  to  believe 
— the  Ten  Commandments,  which  are  laid  down  as 
its  rule  of  life  towards  God  and  its  neighbor — and  the 
necessity  of  grace  from  on  high  having  been  incul- 
cated, that  prayer  is  added  which  our  Lord  Himself 
gave  His  followers  to  use.  The  whole  then  concludes 
with  a  brief  exposition  of  the  nature  of  the  two 
Sacraments — Baptism  and  the  Lord's  Supper — the 
benefits  to  be  derived  from  them,  and  the  requisites 
necessary  for  their  proper  reception. 

Tell  me,  then,  where  in  so  small  a  compass  can  you 
find  so  admirable  a  view  of  the  doctrines  of  our  faith  ? 


234  -  THE    MORAL    TRAINING 

While  the  doubts  and  questionings  of  controversy  are 
shunned,  everything  is  inculcated  which  is  necessary 
to  inform  the  mind  or  regulate  the  life  by  the  rules 
of  holiness.  In  this  respect,  therefore,  the  Church 
has  done  her  part ;  and  were  parents  and  sponsors 
but  faithful  to  their  trust,  the  children  of  the  fold 
would  go  forth  into  the  world,  instructed  in  the 
truth,  armed  against  error,  and  prepared  to  repel  the 
insidious  suggestions  of  those  who  would  seduce 
them  from  the  right  way."'^ 

Nor  let  the  oft-repeated  objection  be  heeded,  that 
the  doctrines  of  our  faith '  are  above  the  comprehen- 
sion of  the  young  child.  We  believe  there  are  none 
taught  in  our  Catechism,  of  which  a  careful  explana- 
tion will  not  enable  the  learner  to  gain  some  percep- 
tion, even  if  he  do  not  fully  grasp  the  meaning. 
And  what  more  than  this,  do  we  "  children  of  a 
larger  growth,"  even  in  the  maturity  of  our  reason, 
understand  of  many  of  the  divine  mysteries  ?  The 
deep  things  of  God  seem  to  float  dimly  before  our 
eyes — "  we  see  through  a  glass  darkly  " — and  are 
obliged  to  wait,  until  in  another  state  of  being,  with 
our  faculties  expanded,  we  "  shall  know,  even  as  also 
we  are  known."  Thus  also  is  it  with  the  child,  and 
precisely  on  tliis  principle  do  we  store  its  mind  with 
many  branches  of  human  learning  which  at  present 
it  cannot   understand.     We   know  that  these  truths 

*  "What  may  be  the  cause  why  so  much  cloth  so  soon  changelh 
color  ?  It  is  because  it  was  never  wet  wadded,  which  giveth  the  fixa- 
tion to  a  color,  and  setteth  it  in  the  cloth. 

"  What  may  be  the  reason  why  so  many,  now-a-days,  are  carried 
about  with  every  wind  of  doctrine,  even  to  scour  every  point  in  the 
compass  round  about?  Surely  it  is  because  they  were  never  well 
catechized  in  the  principles  of  religion." — Tliomas  Fuller. 


OF    THE    CHURCH.  235 

will  be  laid  up  in  its  memory,  and  as  the  intellectual 
powers  are  developed,  their  meaning  will  gradually 
dawn  upon  it.  Beautifully  and  effectually,  indeed, 
has  a  living  Christian  poet  answered  this  objection — 

"O  say  not,  dream  not,  heavenly  notes 
To  childish  ears  are  vain, 
That  the  young  mind  at  random  floats. 
And  cannot  reach  the  strain. 
"Dim  or  unheard,  the  words  may  fall, 
And  yet  the  heaven-taught  mind 
May  learn  the  sacred  air,  and  all 
The  harmony  unwind."* 

Now  look  at  the  third  step  in  this  moral  training. 
The  solemn  obligations  resting  on  parents  having 
been  discharged,  and  the  child  been  trained  up  from 
infancy  "  in  the  nurture  and  admonition  of  the  Lord," 
the  Church  calls  upon  him  again  when  he  has  ar- 
rived at  years  of  discretion.  She  supposes  that  the 
grace  of  God  has  been  ripened  and  matured  in  his 
heart,  and  that  he  is  now  prepared,  openly,  before  the 
world,  to  confess  himself  a  disciple  of  the  Crucified 
Son  of  God.  This  is  done  in  Confirmation,  when  he 
publicly  takes  his  Baptismal  vows  upon  himself;  and 
therefore  the  Church  directs,  that  at  this  period  of 
life — just  when  he  is  in  the  freshness  of  his  youth, 
and  before  he  has  entered  on  the  busy,  active  world — 
he  shall  be  thus  farther  armed  against  temptation. 
He  returns  then  to  the  chancel,  where  he  has  once 
been  admitted  by  Baptism  into  the  Church,  and 
standing  up  before  the  altar,  the  Bishop  addresses  to 
him  the  question — "  Do  you  here,  in  the  presence  of 

*  Keble'' s  Christian  Year.  The  reader  will  find  the  subject  of 
Catechising  nowhere  moi'c  fully  and  admirably  discussed,  that  in 
Bishop  Doane's  Charge  to  the  Convention  of  New-Jersey,  in  1836, 
entitled,  "  The  Church's  Care  for  Little  Children." 


2S6  THE  MORAL    TRAINING 

God,  and  of  this  congregation,  renew  the  solemn 
promise  and  vow  that  ye  made,  or  that  was  made  in 
your  name,  at  your  Baptism ;  ratifying  and  confirm- 
ing the  same ;  and  acknowledging  yourself  bound  to 
beHeve  and  to  do  all  those  things  which  ye  then  un- 
dertook, or  your  sponsors  then  undertook  for  you  ?" 
To  this  the  candidate  "  audibly  answers,  /  do.'' 
And  then,  after  the  united  prayers  of  all  have 
commended  him  to  God,  the  Bishop  lays  his 
hands  upon  his  head,  while  kneeling  before  him, 
with  the  appropriate  petition — "  Defend,  O  Lord,  this 
Thy  servant  with  Thy  Heavenly  grace ;  that  he  may 
continue  Thine  forever;  and  daily  increase  in  thy 
Holy  Spirit  more  and  more,  until  he  come  unto  Thy 
everlasting  kingdom."  How  solemn  then  is  all  this 
service  ?  Who  can  unite  in  it,  without  having  first 
determined  most  fully  to  devote  himself  to  the  ser- 
vice of  God,  or  without  having  every  holy  resolution 
quickened  and  strengthened  within  him  !* 

Thus  it  is  that  we  have  traced  the  young  member 

*  ♦'  At  that  moment  the  question  was  asked,  '  Do  ye  here ' — the 
Bishop  began, — 'in  the  presence  of  God  and  this  congregation,  venew 
the  solemn  promise  and  vow  made  in  your  names  at  your  baptism  ?' 
I  had  separated  myself  from  the  company  of  candidates,  and  stood  a 
little  apart,  looking  at  them.  'Do  they' — I  thought — 'here,  where 
the  dead  in  Christ  are  lying  to  rest  around  them  ;  where  the  eye  of 
God  is  in  an  especial  manner  upon  them  ;  where  their  ministers  are 
watching  as  those  who  must  give  account,  and  anxious  friends  are 
looking  on  even  with  prayers  and  tears — Do  they  come  here  with 
true  hearts,  or  dare  they  here  to  trifle  ?  O  let  them  turn  back  now  ! 
I  almost  said — let  them  not  lie  unto  God  !  or  rather,  here,  as  at  the  foot 
of  the  Cross,  let  them  accept  the  offered  mercy  of  Him  who  waiteth 
to  be  gracious.'  Of  all  the  thoughts  that  come  into  one's  mind  in 
looking  on  that  lovely  congregation,  the  saddest  was  the  dread  that 
some  there,  perhaps,  though  charity  hoped  better  things  of  all,  had 
come  carelessly,  as  to  an  unmeaning  ceremony.  "—5f,f«i?j  in  our  Par- 
ish, p.  198. 


OF    THE    CHURCH.  2^7 

of  the  Church,  from  his  early  infancy,  until  he  stands 
upon  the  verge  of  manhood,  and  is  prepared  to  go 
forth  and  take  his  part  in  its  engrossing  cares.  You 
have  seen  how  the  Church  watched  over  him,  and 
gathered  her  restraints  about  his  steps,  training  him 
up  until  the  hour  when  he  publicly  professed  himself 
one  with  the  faithful.  Now  see  her  future  care,  and 
what,  as  life  goes  on,  she  has  provided  to  strengthen 
him  against  the  encroachments  of  worldliness. 

Our  thoughts  naturally  turn  at  once  to  the  Holy 
Communion.  Of  this  he  is  now  invited  to  partake,  if 
he  can  do  so  humbly,  reverently,  and  with  the  wish 
to  lead  a  godly  life.  The  emblems  of  his  Master's 
broken  body  and  shed  blood  are  placed  before  him, 
and  from  this  Sacrament  he  can  gather  strength  for 
his  future  course.  Solemn  indeed  are  the  reflections 
which  in  these  moments  must  crowd  upon  his  mind, 
wafting  his  thoughts  away  from  this  lower  world ! 
"  With  angels  and  archangels,  and  with  all  the  com- 
pany of  heaven,  he  lauds  and  magnifies  God's  glorious 
name,"  and  thus  is  forced  to  realize,  that  there  is 
indeed  such  a  bond  as  "  the  Communion  of  saints," 
uniting  in  one  fellowship  the  faithful  in  Christ  Jesus, 
whether  they  have  entered  into  the  Paradise  of  rest, 
or  are  still  toiling  on  in  the  wilderness.  And  this 
spiritual  feast  is  provided  so  frequently,  that  its  holy 
influence  cannot  wear  out  by  the  continual  contact 
into  which  he  is  forced  with  the  things  which  are  ap- 
peaUng  to  his  outward  senses.  Each  month  he  is 
called  to  partake  of  it,  that  worldliness  may  have  no 
time  to  gather  over  his  soul — the  affections  become 
alienated  from  his  God — or  the  solemn  scenes  of 
Calvary  be  strange  and  unaccustomed  to  his  thoughts. 


238  THE    MORAL    TRAINING 

Thus  it  is  that  the  Church  provides  for  man's 
"  spiritual  food  and  sustenance  in  that  Holy  Sacra- 
ment, which  is  so  divine  and  comfortable  a  thing  to 
them  who  receive  it  worthily."* 

*  In  the  exhortation  we  say — *'  He  hath  given  His  Son  our  Saviour 
Jesus  Christ,  not  only  to  die  for  us,  but  also  to  be  our  spiritual  food 
and  sustenance  in  that  Holy  Sacrament."  This  then  is  the  doctrine 
of  our  Church,  that  the  body  of  Christ  is  given,  taken,  and  eaten  in 
the  supper,  only  after  a  heavenly  and  spiritual  maimer.  And  the 
mean  whereby  the  body  of  Christ  is  received  and  eaten  in  the  Supper, 
is  faith."  (Art.  XXVIII.)  The  Church  holds  therefore  the  doctrine 
of  the  real  presence  of  Christ  in  the  Eucharist,  bat  not  the  doctrine 
of  His  material  presence.  She  teaches  that  the  change  wrought  in 
the  Elements,  by  their  consecration,  is  simply  a  spiritual  one.  Mr. 
G.  S.  Faber,  in  his  '■^  Diffictilties  of  Romanism,^''  in  speaking  on  this 
subject,  uses  the  term,  '■'■  moral  change,''''  p.  44. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  Church  of  Rome  contends,  that  by  the  con- 
secration the  bread  and  wine  are  changed  in  their  essential  qualities 
so  that  they  cease  to  be  bread  and  wine,  but  become  strictly  and 
literally  the  material  and  substantial  body  and  blood  of  Christ.  This 
is  their  doctrine  of  Transubstantiation. 

That  the  doctrine  of  a  spiritual  change  was  that  of  the  early  church, 
is  evident  from  the  illustrations  they  use  to  explain  this  subject.  For 
example,  Gregory  of  Nyssa  says — "  This  altar,  before  which  we 
stand,  is  physically  mere  common  stone,  difiering  nothing  from  the 
stones  with  which  our  houses  are  built  :  but,  after  it  has  been  conse- 
crated by  benediction  to  the  service  of  God,  it  becomes  a  holy  table, 
a  sanctified  altar.  In  a  similar  manner,  the  eucharistic  bread  is 
originally  mere  common  bread  ;  but  when  it  has  been  consecrated  in 
the  holy  mystery,  it  becomes,  and  is  called,  the  body  of  Christ.  The 
same  power  of  consecration  likewise  imprints  a  new  and  honorable 
character  upon  a  priest,  when  by  a  new  benediction  he  is  separated 
from  the  laity.  For  he,  who  was  previously  nothing  more  than  a 
common  man,  is  suddenly  transformed  into  a  teacher  of  religion,  and 
into  a  steward  of  the  holy  mysteries.  Yet  this  great  mutation  is 
effected  without  any  change  in  his  bodily  form  and  appearance.  Ex- 
ternally, he  is  the  same  that  he  already  was  ;  but  internally,  by  an 
invisible  and  gracious  operation,  a  mighty  change  is  effected  in  his 
soul."  {De  Baptism  Oper.  v.  iii.  p.  369.)  In  these  cases  of  the  altar 
and  the  priest,  Gregory  can  of  course  refer  to  no  spiritual  change. 

The  rise  of  this  error  of  transubstantiation  was  natural.  The  early 
fathers  evinced  an  extreme  anxiety  to  avoid  any  mode  of  speech  which 


OF    THE    CHURCH.  239 

Then,  again,  we  have  her  constant  round  of  ser\aces. 
These  are  regulated  by  no  fitful  devotion,  but  keep 
steadily  in  view  the  great  principle  of  instructing  her 
children  in  the  doctrines  of  Christianity,  and  gradually 
building  them  up  in  a  knowledge  of  the  faith.  Look 
at  her  Sunday  services,  how  they  go  through  the 
whole  circle  of  religious  truth,  and  bring  constantly 
before  our  eyes  the  eventful  life  of  our  Lord,  and  the 
doctrines  he  came  to  unfold.  We  begin  at  Advent, 
by  looking  forward  in  anticipation  of  his  coming, 
until  at  Christmas,  "  with  cheerful  hymns  and  gar- 
lands sweet,"  we  celebrate  His  nativity.  Then,  one 
prominent  action  after  another  of  His  earthly  pil- 
grimage passes  in  review,  until  in  the  season  of  Lent 
we  commemorate  His  bitter  sufferings — His  Passion 
— and  death.  But  Good  Friday  goes  by — the  dark- 
ness which  had  gathered  about  the  tomb  is  dispelled 
by  "  the  vernal  light  of  Easter  morn,"  and  we  enter 
the  house  of  God  to  listen  to  the  story  of  our  Master's 
joyful  Resurrection.  Forty  days  afterwards  we 
celebrate   the    Festival    of  the    Ascension — then,    at 

might  lower  the  dignity  of  this  Sacrament  in  the  estimation  of  the 
people.  They  therefore  often  resorted  to  a  fervid  and  poetical  style 
of  address,  dictated  by  the  glowing  imagination  of  the  Greeks  or  Asi- 
atics, which  identified  the  hallowed  elements  with  the  sacrifice  they 
represented,  "Thus,"  says  Le  Bas,  "  the  impassioned  eloquence  of 
the  preachers  grew  imperceptibly  into  the  doctrine  of  the  Church." 
{Life  of  Widif,  p.  253.)  To  this  language  of  rhetoric  the  Romish 
writers  now  appeal,  as  if  it  had  been  uttered  with  didactic  caution. 
And  yet,  in  all  the  early  fathers  there  is  no  expression  stronger  than 

that  contained  in  one  of  our  own  hymns 

'*  Hail,  sacred  feast,  which  Jesus  makes  ! 
Rich  banquet  of  his  flesh  and  blood  f' 
Would  it  be  logical  a  thousand  years  hence,  to  point  to  this  line  as 
proof  that   our  Church  in  the   19th   century  believed  in  a  physical 
change  ?     Yet  such  is  the  Romish  argument  from  the  early  fathers. 


240  THE    MORAL    TRAINING 

Whitsunday,  the  Pentecostal  coming  of  the  Holy- 
Ghost — and  then,  on  Trinity  Sunday,  we  are  called 
to  remember  tliat  solemn  mystery  of  the  Three  in 
One,  about  which  men  indeed  can  profanely  argue, 
but  on  which  angels  meditate  with  an  awful  reverence. 
"  But  as  hitherto  we  have  celebrated  His  great  works, 
so  henceforth  we  magnify  Himself  For  twenty-five 
weeks  we  represent  in  figure  what  is  to  be  hereafter. 
We  enter  into  our  rest,  by  entering  in  with  Him  who 
having  wrought  and  suffered,  has  opened  the  king- 
dom of  Heaven  to  all  believers.  For  half  a  year  we 
stand  still,  as  if  occupied  solely  in  adoring  Him,  and 
with  the  Seraphim  crying,  '  Holy,  Holy,  Holy,'  con- 
tinually."* Now,  who  can  go  through  this  round  of 
instruction,  and  thoughtfully  contemplate  all  these 
solemn  truths,  without  being  deeply  impressed  by 
the  realities  of  our  religion  ? 

Look,  too,  at  the  Church's  plan  of  daily  services, 
as  laid  down  in  her  Calendar.  She  has  so  divided 
up  the  Word  of  God,  that  the  Psalms  can  be  read  over 
once  in  each  month,  and  during  the  course  of  each 
year,  in  her  lessons,  she  goes  once  through  the  Old 
Testament,  and  three  times  through  the  New,  except 
the  Book  of  the  Revelation  of  St.  John.  And  at  the 
same  time,  at  intervals  come  the  Saints'  Days,  when 
we  are  called  to  commemorate  each  of  the  Apostles 
in  succession,  and  others  of  the  holy  dead  who  have 
passed  away  to  glory.  Thus  we  are  shown  that,  to 
serve  God  truly,  and  to  shine  like  lights  in  the  world, 
we  must  follow  in  the  steps  of  these  His  favored  ser- 
vants, and  devote  our  hearts  and  lives  to  his  worship 
and  service.     We  are  taught  to  live  for  a  time  with 

*  Newman's  Sermons,  Vol.  VI.  p.  400. 


OF   THE    CHURCH.  24 1 

the  dead — to  be  joined  with  them,  as  it  were,  in  a 
mysterious  love,  realizing  that  though  the  earthly  eye 
cannot  see  them,  yet  they  are  "  not  far  from  every 
one  of  us,"  living  in  a  nobler  existence  than  they  ever 
enjoyed  on  earth.  And  even  when  the  Church  does 
not  publicly  celebrate  this  daily  service,  her  members 
have  still  the  Prayer-Book  in  their  hands,  to  lead 
their  thoughts  aright,  and  to  direct  them  each  day  to 
the  same  portions  of  the  Word  of  God,  that  they  may 
thus  with  one  mind  follow  the  Church  in  the  lessons 
she  prescribes,  and  be  ever  advancing  in  religious 
knowledge.  She  has  both  her  Festivals  of  holy  joy, 
when  they  are  called  to  exult  in  the  rich  promises 
which  are  made  them,  and  again  her  weekly  and 
yearly  Fasts,  when  they  are  directed  to  chasten  their 
spirits,  and  bring  their  bodies  into  subjection,  that 
the  earthly  and  sin-born  nature  may  not  war  against 
that  influence  in  the  heart,  which  is  ever  striving  to 
lead  them  nearer  to  their  God.* 

In  this  way  it  is  that,  year  after  year,  through  a 
lifetime,  the  Church  appeals  both  to  the  intellect  and 
the    heart.      She  instructs  her  children  through  the 

*  The  following  is  the  Church's  table  of  Fasts,  as  given  in  the 
Prayer-Book  immediately  after  the  Calendar. 

A    TABLE   OF   FASTS. 

ASH-WEDNESDAY.  GOOD-FRIDAY. 

Other  days  of  Fasting ;  on  which  the  Church  requires  such  a  measure 
of  Abstinence,  as  is  more  especially  suited  to  extraordinary  Acts 
and  Exercises  of  Devotion. 
1st.  The  Forty  Days  of  Lent. 

2d.  The  Ember-Days  at  the  Four  Seasons,  being  the  Wednesday, 
Friday,  and  Saturday  after  the  first  Sunday  in  Lent,  the  Feast  of 
Pentecost,  September  14,  and  December  13. 

3d.  The  three  Rogation  Days,  being  the  Monday,  Tuesday,  and 
Wednesday  before  Holy  Thursday,  or  the  Ascension  of  our  Lord. 
4th.  All  the  Fridays  in  the  Year,  except  Christmas  Day. 
16 


242  THE    MORAL     TRAINING 

mind  and  the  affections.  She  uses  devotion  as  the 
instrument ;  by  her  holy  prayers  elevating  their 
thoughts  above  this  passing  world — sanctifying  their 
hearts — and,  by  teaching  them  to  conquer  themselves ; 
rendering  them  children  of  the  light  and  of  the  day. 
They  must  acquire  the  habit  of  prayer — not  that 
irregular,  varying  devotion  which  burns  around  us — 
at  one  time  apparently  kindled  to  an  angel's  fervor, 
and  at  another,  utterly  dead  and  cold — but  the  flame 
which  shines  on  steadily,  unaffected  by  the  dampness 
of  this  earth,  and  growing  brighter  and  brighter  to 
the  end.  "  As  our  Lord  led  persons  gradually  to  the 
knowledge  of  the  truth,  by  quiet  teaching,  by  leading 
them  to  observe  His  works,  by  drawing  out  their 
self-denial  and  engaging  their  confidence,  so,  in 
obedience  to  his  command  '  to  make  disciples  of  all 
nations,'  the  system  of  the  Church  is  that  of  parental 
and  pastoral  training,  and  building  up  by  practical 
instruction,  such  as  catechizing  and  the  use  of  a  con- 
stant devotional  form."  She  acts  on  this  principle — 
to  induce  her  members  to  acquire  a  devotional  frame 
of  mind,  by  self-discipline  and  frequent  repetition — 
for  thus  only  can  it  be  formed. 

But  besides  this  regular,  constant  training  of  the 
Church,  there  are  also  her  occasional  services,  which 
are  adapted  to  every  situation  in  which  her  children 
can  be  placed.  At  home  or  abroad — in  safety  or  in 
peril — in  peace  or  in  war — she  is  ever  at  their  side. 
Even  on  the  wild  billows  of  the  sea,  she  speaks  to  the 
storm-tossed  mariner  in  words  which  bring  to  his 
remembrance  the  quiet  Church  at  home,  and  thus 
connect  him  in  spirit  with  the  litde  circle  he  has 
left. 


OF  THE   CHURCH.  243 

"  Thou  too  are  there,  with  thy  soft  inland  tones, 

Mother  of  our  new  birth  ; 
The  lonely  ocean  learns  thy  orisons, 

And  loves  thy  sacred  mirth  : 
When  storms  are  high,  or  when  the  fires  of  war 

Come  lightening  round  our  course, 
Thou  breath'st  a  note  like  music  from  afar. 

Tempering  rude  hearts  with  calm  angelic  force."  * 

In  every  hour  of  joy,  she  is  with  the  members  of 
her  fold,  to  impart  a  calm  and  holy  spirit  to  their 
happiness.  Have  mercies  been  vouchsafed  to  them  ? 
Here  are  her  prayers  of  thanksgiving,  putting  v/ords 
into  their  mouth,  by  which  in  the  great  congregation 
they  can  pour  out  the  overflowing  gratitude  of  their 
hearts.  By  her  holy  blessings  she  sanctifies  the 
marriage-tie,  divesting  it  of  its  worldliness,  and  in  the 
name  of  the  Triune  God,  invokes  upon  those  who 
kneel  before  the  altar,  "  His  spiritual  benediction  and 
grace,  that  they  may  so  live  together  in  this  life,  that 
in  the  world  to  come  they  may  have  life  everlasting." 
Thus  she  follows  the  leadings  of  Scripture,  where  St. 
Paul  declares  this  state  to  be  "  honorable  in  all,"  and 
even  exalts  it  as  a  solemn  mystery  to  be  an  image  of 
the  union  between  Christ  and  His  Church,  f 

Neither  is  it  for  the  sunshine  of  life,  only  that  the 

*  Keble's  Christian  Year. 

f  Is  it  not  in  accordance  with  the  spirit  of  the  present  day,  to 
deprive  this  tie  of  its  religious  character,  and  to  regard  marriage  as  a 
mere  civil  contract  ?  Widely  different  from  this  has  always  been  the  feel- 
ing of  those  who  have  imbibed  the  old  Catholic  spirit  of  the  Church. 
TertuUian  in  the  second  century  asks — "How  shall  I  sufficiently 
declare  the  happiness  of  that  marriage  which  the  Church  makes,  the 
oblation  tonJir?ns,  and  the  benediction  seals?'''' — [^Ad  Uxorem,  lib. 
ii.  c.  8.)  And  where  can  this  service  so  properly  be  performed  as  before 
the  altar  ? 

"  Where  should  ye  seek  Love's  perfect  smile, 
But  where  your  prayers  were  learn' d  erewhile, 

In  her  own  native  place  !"  Keble. 


244  THE    MORAL    TRAINING 

Church  has  provided  her  services.  Knowing  that 
here  we  are  "  born  unto  trouble,  as  the  sparks  fly- 
upwards,"  and  that  God  most  often  purifies  us  by  the 
furnace  of  affliction,  she  is  ready  also  to  "  weep  with 
them  that  weep."  An  Apostle  says — "  is  any  among 
you  afflicted  ?  let  him  pray."  And  in  obeying  this 
injunction,  where  can  we  find  petitions  more  suitable 
than  she  sets  forth — so  simple,  yet  so  touching  ? 
"  O  merciful  God,  and  Heavenly  Father,  who  hast 
taught  us  in  Thy  Holy  Word,  that  thou  dost  not 
wilhngly  afflict  or  grieve  the  children  of  men ;  look 
down  with  pity,  we  beseech  Thee,  upon  the  sorrows 
of  Thy  servant,  for  whom  our  prayers  are  desired. 
In  Thy  wisdom,  Thou  hast  seen  fit  to  visit  him  with 
trouble,  and  to  bring  distress  upon  him.  Remember 
him,  O  Lord,  in  mercy  ;  sanctify  Thy  fatherly  correc- 
tion to  him  ;  endue  his  soul  with  patience  under  his 
affliction,  and  with  resignation  to  Thy  blessed  will ; 
comfort  him  with  a  sense  of  Thy  goodness  ;  lift  up 
Thy  countenance  upon  him,  and  give  him  peace, 
through  Jesus  Christ,  our  Lord." 

"  Is  any  sick  among  you  ?" — asks  the  same 
Apostle — "  let  him  call  for  the  elders  of  the  Church, 
and  let  them  pray  over  him."  And  for  this  also  the 
Church  has  provided.  In  her  "  Visitation  of  the 
Sick,"  she  marks  out  the  course  to  be  pursued, 
bringing  down  the  subject  of  our  faith  to  something 
tangible  and  practical — dispelling  at  once  the  dreamy 
reveries  of  modern  days — and  fastening  upon  those 
points  in  the  belief  of  the  mind,  and  the  conduct  of 
the  life,  which  present  the  only  true  evidence  of 
preparation  for  Heaven.  She  has  also  "The  Com- 
munion of  the    Sick,"    by   which,    with   appropriate 


OF    THE    CHURCH.  245 

prayers,  the  Sacrament  of  the  Lord's  death  can  be 
administered  to  him  who  is  debarred  from  minghn'g 
with  his  fellow- worshippers  in  the  house  of  God,  and 
in  this  way,  he  eats  the  bread  of  Hfe  and  keeps  up 
his  spiritual  union  with  the  faithful*  And  thus  she 
is  present,  to  sustain  and  comfort  his  fainting  spirit, 
while  days  of  suffering  and  nights  of  weariness  are 
appointed  him,  ever  .  being  at  hand  Avith  her  holy 
words.  Nor  does  she  leave  him  when  life  is  just 
flickering  away.  In  the  very  latest  moment  of 
existence,  when  the  soul  is  trembling  on  the  brink  of 
eternity,  she  has  provided  that  solemn  prayer  by 
which  her  ministers  may  commend  the  departing 
spirit  into  the  hands  of  its  God.  Thus,  the  last 
accents  which  fall  upon  his  ear  are  the  touching 
words — **  O  Almighty  God,  with  whom  do  live  the 
spirits  of  just  men  made  perfect,  after  they  are 
delivered  from  their  earthly  prisons ;  we  humbly 
commend  the  soul  of  this  Thy  servant,  our  dear 
brother,  into  Thy  hands,  as  into  the  hands  of  a  faith- 
ful Creator,  and  most  merciful  Saviour ;  most  humbly 
beseeching  Thee  that  it  may  be  precious  in  Thy  sight ; 
wash  it,  we  pray  Thee,  in  the  blood  of  that  Immacu- 
late Lamb,  that  was  slain  to  take  away  the  sins  of 
the  world  ;  that  whatsoever  defilements  it  may  have 
contracted  in  the  midst  of  this  miserable  and  naughty 
world,  through  the  lust  of  the  flesh,  or  the  wiles  of 
Satan,  being  purged  and  done  away,  it  may  be  pre- 

*   "  A  simple  altar  by  the  bed 

For  high  Communion  meetly  spread, 

Chalice,  and  plate,  and  snowy  vest, 

We  eat  and  drink  :  then  calmly  blest, 

All  mourners,  one  with  dying  breath. 

We  sate  and  talk'd  of  Jesus'  death."         Keble. 


246  THE  MORAL    TRAINING 

sented  pure  and  without  spot  before  Thee."  Never, 
indeed,  in  time  of  health  and  strength,  can  the  words 
of  this  prayer  come  home  to  us  in  all  their  force. 
To  realize  their  full  solemnity,  we  must  hear  them 
uttered  in  the  chamber  of  the  dying,  when  the  spirit 
of  the  Christian  is  wrestling  in  its  last  conflict,  and 
the  mortal  is  just  putting  on  immortality. 

Nor  does  the  Church's  care  end  here,  even  when 
the  spirit  is  gone.  She  still  has  a  voice  to  utter  with 
regard  to  the  earthly  tabernacle  which  it  once  in- 
habited. She  proclaims  over  it  the  holy  promises  of 
the  Gospel,  in  the  name  of  Him  who  has  declared 
Himself  to  be  "  the  Resurrection  and  the  Life,"  and 
then  commits  it  to  its  last  resting-place,  "earth  to 
earth,  ashes  to  ashes,  dust  to  dust,"  pointing  forward 
the  surviving  relatives  who  have  gathered  around, 
to  "  the  general  resurrection  in  the  last  day,  and  the 
life  of  the  world  to  come,  through  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ;  at  whose  second  coming  in  glorious  majesty 
to  judge  the  world,  the  earth  and  the  sea  shall  give 
up  their  dead  ;  and  the  corruptible  bodies  of  those 
who  sleep  in  Him  shall  be  changed,  and  made  like 
unto  His  own  glorious  body ;  according  to  the 
mighty  working,  whereby  He  is  able  to  subdue  all 
things  to  Himself." 

Such  then  is  the  system  of  the  Church — that 
ancient  and  Catholic  system,  derived  by  her  from  her 
earlier  and  better  days — which  she  has  kept  in  her 
formularies,  and  which  by  means  of  her  Prayer- 
Book  is  ever  spread  out  before  her  children.  You 
perceive,  then,  that  never  for  an  instant  does  she  lose 
sight  of  one  committed  to  her  trust.  From  his  Bap- 
tism to   his  Burial — from  the  cradle  to  the  grave — 


OF    THE    CHURCH.  247 

she  is  ever  at  his  side.  She  does  not  hazard  his 
spiritual  improvement  on  the  fidehty  or  changing 
views  of  those  who  may  happen  to  minister  at  her 
altars,  but  herself  marks  out  the  plan  and  sketches 
the  system  by  which  her  members  are  to  live.  Day 
after  day — month  after  month — year  after  year — she 
expects  to  go  forward,  leading  them  ever  on  to 
nobler  attainments  in  the  divine  life,  and  as  this  world 
gradually  fades  away,  preparing  them  more  fully  for 
that  which  is  to  come.  Her  lesson  is — "  In  qicietjiess 
and  confidence  shall  be  your  strength." 

Tell  me  then — I  again  ask — is  not  this  the  end 
which  God  intended  his  Church  should  answer,  to 
train  up  His  children  for  Heaven  ?  And  is  not  this 
the  true  object  of  our  faith — by  a  constant  struggle 
with  ourselves,  and  by  inward,  spiritual  discipline — 
steadily  to  increase  the  power  of  holiness  over  our 
hearts  ?  Or,  does  religion  consist  in  periodical  ex- 
citements— in  renouncing  for  a  time  all  dependence 
on  the  reason,  and  suffering  the  imagination  to  be 
awakened  to  a  perfect  delirium — until  we  lose  sight 
of  things  earthly  and  terrestrial  ?  Is  the  soul  to  pass 
from  spiritual  death  to  life,  by  one  spasmodic  effort, 
amid  the  whirlwind  of  excited  passions  ?  Is  an  in- 
quiring, immortal  being  to  be  taught  the  way  to 
Heaven,  by  distorted,  unnatural  appeals — by  array- 
ing scenes  of  terror  before  the  eye,  until  the  mind  is 
incapacitated  from  forming  a  calm  and  rational  de- 
cision ?  Are  the  holiest  themes  of  our  faith — themes 
on  which  angels  can  dwell  with  the  deepest  adora- 
tion— to  be  bandied  about  by  ignorance  and  fanati- 
cism, and  lowered  by  every  degrading  association, 
until  all  reverence  is  gone  ?     Was  it  thus  that  our 


248  THE    MORAL    TRAINING 

Lord  proclaimed  the  solemn  precepts  of  the  Gospel, 
on  the  hill-sides  of  Judea,  or  in  the  Courts  of  the 
Temple  ?  No,  everything  with  Him  was  elevating, 
lofty,  and  impressive.  Men  might  quail  beneath  the 
truths  He  uttered,  but  the  skeptic  found  nothing  in 
His  teaching  from  which  he  could  gather  new  topics 
for  scofifing,  nor  were  the  worldly-minded  able  to 
indulge  in  ribaldry  and  laughter. 

And  in  the  same  spirit  would  the  Church  impart 
all  her  instructions.  Solemnly,  and  steadily  her 
voice  is  heard,  impressing  upon  our  hearts  the 
awakening  lessons  with  which  she  is  charged.  She 
appeals  to  you,  not  for  to-day  only — or  ■  for  this 
month — or  this  season — but  she  goes  on  unceasingly 
through  your  lifetime.  She  wishes  you  deeply  to 
realize  the  truth  that  religion  is  not  a  thing  for 
particular  times  and  places,  but  a  holy  influence 
which  is  to  be  exerted  over  every  part  of  our  exist- 
ence, here  and  hereafter.  Therefore  it  is,  that  "  she 
takes  to  herself  almost  every  common  action  of  our 
lives,  and  makes  it  her  own  by  giving  it  a  religious 
turn,  a  Church  meaning.  She  keeps  meddling  with 
us  in  every  stage  of  our  lives.  She  comes  among  us 
in  our  Baptism,  Education,  Confirmation,  Marriage, 
Sickness,  and  Death.  She  calls  upon  us  to  consecrate 
our  worldly  goods,  by  yielding  a  portion  up- to  her. 
She  bids  us  make  our  time  minister  to  Eternity,  by 
calling  us  away  from  a  worldly  use  of  it  on  her 
Sunday  and  Saints'  days.  She  makes  us  put  a  Hmit 
even  upon  our  natural  appetites,  that  she  may  teach 
us,  through  her  Fasts,  obedience  and  self-denial  and 
bountiful  giving  of  alms.  Thus  she  strives  to  inter- 
weave  herself  with    our   most    secret    and    common 


OF    THE    CHURCH.  249 

thoughts,  our  every-day  actions,  our  domestic  griefs 
and  joys.  She  would  put  something  spiritual  into 
them  all.  She  is  diligent,  unwearying,  ungrudging 
as  her  Master,  always  going  about  doing  good."* 

Is  not  this  system,  then,  one  most  beautiful  in  all 
its  parts,  and  proving  what  care  tlie  Church  has 
taken  of  our  spiritual  interests  ?  Is  there  anything 
here  left  undone,  which  ought  to  have  been  done — 
any  hnk  wanting  in  the  chain  by  which  she  binds 
us  to  the  Throne  of  God  ?  No,  he  who  is  once 
within  her  fold,  and  yet  wishes  to  cast  aside  her 
influence,  and  return  to  worldliness,  would  be  obliged 
to  make  an  effort,  before  he  can  succeed  in  bursting 
the  bands  which  she  hath  twined  about  him,  and 
breaking  away  from  her  holy  restraints.  Not  on  her 
therefore  must  be  cast  the  blame,  when  any  who 
have  belonged  to  her,  fall  by  the  way,  and  thus  prove 
that  they  are  to  have  no  part  nor  lot  in  the  Heavenly 
inheritance.  She  has  provided  everything  necessary 
for  their  spiritual  welfare.  The  waters  of  life  are 
flowing  beside  them,  brightly  and  beautifully,  but 
they  will  not  stoop  and  drink.  The  Heavenly  armor 
is  before  them,  but  they  will  not  array  themselves  in 
it  for  the  conflict. 

Do  I  address  one  individual,  then,  who  has  ever 
felt  inclined  to  distrust  the  Church,  and  to  wander 
elsewhere  seeking  food  ?  Is  there  one,  who  fears 
lest  he  cannot  grow  in  holiness  beneath  her  quiet 
round  of  services,  who  charges  her  with  formality, 
and  wishes  to  turn  to  some  place,  where  he  can  find 
more  excitement  ?  My  brother  !  it  is  not  by  noise 
and  bustle  that  you  are  to  be  aided  in  your  progress 

*  Faber  on  "  The  Church  Catechism,"  p.  6. 


2  so  THE    MORAL    TRAINING 

to  Heaven.  The  contest  you  are  to  wage,  must  be 
fought  within — in  your  own  heart — and  from  the 
responsibihty  of  this,  nothing  can  relieve  you.  Ex- 
citement will  only  lead  your  thoughts  away  to  the 
outward  world  of  action,  instead  of  the  little  inward 
world  of  meditation.  It  can  never  produce  the  neces- 
sary moral  discipline,  and  if  you  trust  to  it,  you  will 
find,  when  the  morning  of  the  Resurrection  comes, 
that  you  are  without  the  wedding  garment. 

Again ;  let  me  ask  such  a  person  another  question 
— Have  you  thoroughly  tried  this  system  of  the 
Church,  to  see  what  is  its  effect  ?  She  has  appointed, 
as  we  have  shown  you,  varied  services.  Have  you 
faithfully  attended  all  of  these — Sundays  and  week- 
days— on  Festivals  and  in  Lent  ?  Have  you  acted 
out  that  principle,  by  which  alone  her  true  children 
are  guided,  that  nothing  but  an  insuperable  obstacle 
shall  prevent  them  from  being  present  here  ?  If  you 
have  not,  what  possible  idea  can  you  form,  of  the 
influence  of  her  holy  system  ?  She  has  also  her 
regular  Fast  days,  to  discipline  your  spirit,  and  recall 
your  affections  from  a  world  which  is  passing  away. 
Have  you  observed  them  as  you  should,  afflicting 
the  soul  here  that  it  may  be  saved  hereafter  ?  She 
has  too  her  Holy  Festivals,  when,  in  a  spirit  of  sub- 
dued joy,  we  are  to  come  before  God  in  thanksgiving. 
Have  you  done  so,  or  have  those  solemn,  consecrated 
days  been  lost,  and  unmarked  amidst  the  other  days 
of  your  worldly  life  ?  Oh,  if  you  have  not,  month 
after  month,  sat  humbly  at  her  feet,  and  listened  to 
her  teaching,  what  right  have  you  to  allege  that  she 
does  not  supply  every  spiritual  want  ?  She  can  only 
place   her  system  before   you,  and  then  leave  it  to 


OF    THE    CHURCH.  25 1 

yourself  to  enjoy  its  benefits  or  not.     She  can  minis- 
ter only  to  the  faithful. 

Come,  then,  and  make  but  trial  of  her  power. 
While  trouble  is  out  among  the  nations,  and  "  men's 
hearts  are  failing  them  for  fear,  and  for  looking  after 
those  things  which  are  coming  on  the  earth,"  we  call 
you  to  this  ancient  fold,  where  the  landmarks  are 
still  unchanged.  Her  strength  is  unabated — her 
grace  is  undiminished — and  she  can  now  pour  into 
your  heart  the  same  full  tide  of  joy,  which  she  has 
given  to  the  saints  in  the  generations  which  have 
gone.  Still,  her  prayers,  and  Sacraments,  and  holy 
rites,  remain  as  of  old,  and  she  stands  before  you,  in 
this  world  a  home  for  the  lonely,  and  at  the  same 
time  a  type  of  that  eternal  and  unchanging  home  for 
which  she  would  prepare  you. 


VIII. 

POPULAR  OBJECTIONS  AGAINST  TflE  CHURCH. 

* 

Bide  thou  tliy  lime  ! 
Watch  with  meek  eyes  the  race  of  pride  and  crime: 
Sit  in  the  gate,  and  be  the  heathen's  jest, 

Smihng  and  self-possest. 
O  thou,  to  whom  is  pledged  a  Victor's  sway, 

Bide  thou  the  Victor's  day  ! 

Lyra  ApostoUca. 

There  are  some  so  blinded  by  prejudice,  that  every- 
thing connected  with  the  distinctive  principles  of  the 
Church,  is  the  object  of  their  special  anathema. 
They  see  no  beauty  in  her  ancient,  solemn  services — 
nothing  venerable  in  the  long  succession  of  her 
Bishops,  as  the  unbroken  line  comes  down  through 
eighteen  centuries.  They  understand  but  little  of 
her  peculiarities —they  know  not  what  is  Primitive 
and  Catholic — and  they  care  not  to  inquire.  The 
fact  that  anything  which  they  have  abandoned,  has 
been  retained  by  the  Church,  is  sufficient  to  draw 
down  upon  it  their  reprobation.  "  Having  eyes,  they 
see  not,  and  having  ears,  they  hear  not."  They  form 
a  perfect  illustration  of  old  Fuller's  description  of 
Prynne — *'  So  great  is  his  antipathy  against  Episco- 
pacy, that  if  a  Seraph  himself  should  be  a  Bishop, 
he  would  either  find  or  make  some  sick  feathers  in 
his  wings."  Now,  to  such  persons  explanations  are 
useless.  Words  are  wasted  on  them.  They  can 
only  be  left  to  go  on,  until  their  wilful  blindness 
leads  them  into  some  strange  extravagance,  and  they 


POPULAR  OBJECTIONS  AGAINST  THE  CHURCH.    253 

thus  by  their  conduct  give  a  new  proof  of  what  Dr. 
Johnson  asserted,  that  "  fanaticism  is  robust  igno- 
rance." 

There  are  others,  however,  who  will  listen  like 
reasonable  beings.  They  have,  perhaps,  been  edu- 
cated in  entire  misapprehension  of  the  spirit  which 
pervades  the  Church,  and  even  of  the  object  of  her 
services.  They  have  heard  the  oft-repeated  calum- 
nies which  are  urged  against  her,  yet  never  met  with 
their  refutation.  By  such  persons,  then,  a  few  words 
of  explanation  will  often  be  received  in  that  spirit 
which  should  always  characterize  the  sincere  inquirer 
after  truth.  I  propose,  therefore,  this  evening  briefly 
to  discuss  some  of  the  COMMON  AND  POPULAR 
OBJECTIONS  WHICH  ARE  URGED  AGAINST  THE 
Church.  Several  which  I  shall  mention,  may  ap- 
pear to  those  already  within  the  pale  of  the  Church, 
as  being  too  trivial  and  unimportant  to  be  noticed. 
Yet  they  are  only  such  as  I  have  often  myself  en- 
countered, for  {Q.-W  subjects  connected  with  religion  are 
so  little  understood  by  the  great  mass  of  those  about 
us,  as  the  claims  and  true  position  of  our  Church. 

One  objection  employed  against  us  is — our  use  of 
the  tvord  "  Catholic."  In  the  Apostle's  Creed,  which 
we  repeat  every  Sunday,  \ve  declare — "  I  beheve  in 
the  Holy  Catholic  Church  " — and  in  the  second  Creed 
set  down  in  our  Prayer-Book — that  called  the  Nicene, 
and  which  was  adopted  A.  D.  325,  to  be  explanatory 
of  the  first — this  confession  is  made  still  more  strongly 
— "  I  believe  one  Catholic  and  Apostolic  Church." 
So,  too,  in  one  of  the  Prayers  in  "The  Visitation  of 
the  Sick,"  we  pray  God,  that  "  when  we  shall  have 
served  Him  in  our  generation,  we  may  be  gathered 


254  POPULAR    OBJECTIONS 

unto  our  fathers  ...  in  the  communion  of  the 
Catholic  Church."  Now,  to  many  persons  the  phrase 
CatJiolic  CJiuj'ch  conveys  nothing  but  the  idea  of  the 
Church  of  Rome,  because  they  have  most  erroneously 
been  accustomed  to  distinguish  the  members  of  thai- 
particular  body  by  the  name  of  Catholics,  although  it 
is  a  title  which  belongs  to  them  no  more  than  it 
does  to  any  other  branch  of  the  Christian  Church. 

This  word  is  derived  from  the  Greek  word 
Ka'^o\iKo<;,  which  means  general  or  universal. 
The  Holy  Catholic  Church,  then,  means  the  Holy 
Universal  Church,  as  existing  in  her  different  branches 
in  all  parts  of  the  earth,  and  in  all  ages  of  the  world. 
For  example,  this  is  the  Greek  word  which  is  em- 
ployed in  the  New  Testament  in  setting  forth  the 
titles  of  the  Epistles  of  St.  James,  St.  Peter,  St.  Jude, 
and  the  First  Epistle  of  St.  John  ;  because  instead  of 
being  addressed  to  particular  Churches— as  St.  Paul 
addressed  his  Epistles  to  the  Church  in  Corinth,  or 
Rome,  or  Ephesus — they  were  written  to  all  the 
Churches  throughout  the  world.  It  might,  therefore, 
be  translated — and  it  would  be  the  most  literal  render- 
ing— "the  Catholic  Epistle  {ErtiffroXri  Ka^oXiut]) 
of  James,  or  Peter,  or  John."  Instead  of  which,  as 
you  remember,  it  is  translated  in  our  version — "  the 
General  Epistle  of  James,  and  Peter,  and  John." 

In  the  early  ages,  when  small  heretical  sects  occa- 
sionally arose,  and  separated  from  the  great  body  of 
the  faithful,  calling  themselves  by  different  party 
names,  the  Church  instead  retained  the  title  of 
Catholic,  to  distinguish  herself  from  them,  as  being 
that  one,  continuous,  orthodox  body,  which  had 
always  existed,  and  to  which  the  preservation  of  the 


AGAINST    THE    CHURCH.  255 

truth    was   committed.     The  Catholic    Church    then 
was  that  which  was  spread   throughout   the   world, 
and  was  destined  to  continue  also  through  all  ages, 
even  unto  the  end  of  time.     Her  common  bond  was 
the    Apostolic    Ministry,  and    her   unity    on    all  the 
grand    cardinal    doctrines    of  the    faith.     On    every 
shore  her  branches  were  found  under  their  different 
Bishops.     Thus,   there  was   the   Catholic   Church  of 
Jerusalem,  that  of  Antioch,  of  Alexandria,  of  Rome, 
and  that  in  Western  Europe.     They  had,  indeed,   no 
single,  visible  earthly  head,  presiding  over  them  all, 
but  were  independent  of  each  other,  in  the  same  way 
that  the  Church  in  this  country  is  now  independent  of 
the  Church  in  England.^^     Yet,  although  thus  sepa- 
rated in   distant   regions,  and   speaking  divers  Ian 
guages,    they  still   looked    to    each    other,    as  being 
branches,    together   of  the  same  vine.     Beautifully, 
indeed,  is  this  illustrated  in  the  writings  of  one  of  the 
old  Fathers — "  The  Church,"  he  says,  "  is  one,  though 

*  The  causes  which  gave  rise  to  the  supremacy  of  the  Bishops  of 
Rome  are  obvious.  The  principal  one  was,  the  temporal  dignity  and 
wealth  of  that  city.  This  gave  to  its  Church  an  early  pre-eminence, 
and  placed  great  power  in  the  hands  of  her  rulers.  Rome  was  the 
mistress  of  the  world — the  centre  to  which  all  eyes  were  directed — and 
this  feeling  of  respect  and  veneration  naturally  extended  to  the 
Church  there.  Thus  the  Council  of  Chalcedon  declared  that  Rome 
had  obtained  privileges  on  account  of  its  being  the  imperial  City 
{Can.  xxviii.)  Cyprian  also  assigns  this  reason  for  honoring  the 
Roman  Church  :  "  Quoniam  pro  magnitudine  sua  debet  Carthaginem 
Roma  prascedere."  {Epist.  49.)  Precisely  the  same  causes  now 
give  the  Bishop  of  London  greater  influence  in  the  Christian  world, 
than  is  possessed  by  the  Bishop  of  Sodor  and  Man.  In  an  age  of 
darkness  and  superstition,  it  was  easy  for  a  succession  of  ambitious 
prelates  gradually  to  expand  this  influence  into  supremacy. 

Nothing,  however,  can  be  more  conclusive  than  the  historical 
argument  against  this  claim  of  the  Bishop  of  Rome.  When  Poly- 
crates  and  the  Bishops   of  Asia   disagreed  with  Pope  Victor,   they 


256  POPULAR    OBJECriONS 

multiplied  far  and  wide  by  its  naturally  prolific  ten- 
dency ;  in  like  manner  as  the  sun  has  rays  many, 
yet  one  light ;  and  the  tree  has  many  boughs,  yet 
their  strength,  from  the  root  upwards,  is  a  single 
property ;  and  when  many  streams  flow  from  one 
head,  a  character  of  multiplicity  may  be  developed 
in  the  copiousness  of  their  discharge,  and  yet  the 
unity  of  their  nature  must  be  recognized  in  the  foun- 
tain they   proceed    from.     Divide  the  ray  from  the 

seemed  to  pay  very  little  regard  to  his  opinions  or  his  excommunica- 
tions. {Euseb.  Ecdes.  Hist.  lib.  v.  c.  24.)  Irenseus,  too,  rebuked 
the  same  Pope  for  his  arrogance.  (Ibid.)  St.  Cyprian  bestowed  on 
the  Bishop  of  Rome  no  higher  title  than  that  of  brother  and  colleague, 
and  expressed  the  utmost  disregard  of  Pope  Stephen's  judgment  with 
regard  to  heretics.  [Cyp.  ad  Pomp.  74.)  The  early  Bishops  of 
Rome  indeed  disclaimed  all  such  authority.  Gregory  the  Great,  in 
the  6th  Century,  tells  us,  that  "the  Fathers  of  the  Council  of  Chalce- 
don  were  they  who  first  offered  to  his  predecessors  the  title  of 
Universal  Bishop,  which  they  refused  to  accept."  (Epist.  Lib.  vii. 
Ep.  30.)  He  elsewhere  condemns  the  Patriarch  of  Constantinople 
for  assuming  this  title,  and  says — "Whoever  claims  the  Universal 
Episcopate,  is  the  forerunner  of  Anti-Christ."  (Ego  fidenter  dico, 
quod  quisquis  se  Universalem  Sacerdotem  vocat,  vel  vocari  desiderat, 
in  elatione  sua,  Anti-Christum  prcecurrit.)  (Lib.  vi.  Epist.  30.)  The 
Second  General  Council  indeed — that  of  Constantinople,  A.  D.  381 — 
gave  the  title  of  "Mother  of  all  Churches,"  not  to  the  Church  of 
Rome,  but  that  of  Jerusalem,  (PercivaPs  Roman  Schism,  p.  32,) 
It  was  not  until  the  eleventh  century  that  this  gigantic  system  was 
fully  matured.  Then  came  the  attempt  by  the  Henries  of  Germany— 
the  Imperial  line  of  Fraconia — to  secularize  the  Church,  and  incor- 
porate it  into  the  State.  The  question  was,  therefore,  whether  the 
Church  should  submit  to  this  feudal  vassalage,  or  be  herself  the  ruler 
of  the  world  ?  To  effect  the  latter  result,  Hildebrand  set  forth 
lofty  and  unauthorized  pretensions  in  behalf  of  the  Church  of  Rome, 
and  his  victory  in  this  struggle  endowed  her  with  that  supremacy, 
which  she  has  ever  since  claimed.  See  Bowden^s  Life  and  Pontificate 
of  Gregory  VII.     2  vols.     Loud.  1840,  passim. 

See  this  subject  fully  discussed  in  Barrorv  on  the  Pope^s  Supremacy 
— Bp.  Hopkins^ s  Church  of  Rome  compared  with  Prim.  CJmrch — and 
Palmer^s  Treatise  on  the  Church,  vol.  ii.  p.  451 — 493. 


AGAINST    THE    CHURCH.  257 

sun,  and  the  principle  of  unity  will  negative  their 
separation ;  lop  the  bough  from  the  tree,  it  will  want 
strength  to  blossom  ;  cut  the  stream  from  its  foun- 
tain, the  remnant  will  be  dried  up.  Thus  the  Church, 
invested  with  light  from  the  Lord,  sends  out  her 
rays  over  the  whole  earth ;  and  yet  the  light  is  one, 
disseminated  over  everywhere ;  with  no  separation 
of  the  original  body,  she  stretches  forth  the  rich 
luxuriance  of  her  branches  over  all  tlie  world,  and 
pours  out  her  onward  streams,  and  spreads  into  the 
distance ;  yet  is  there  one  head,  one  source,  one 
mother,  in  all  the  instances  of  her  eventful  fecundity.* 

Such  in  that  day  was  the  view  entertained  of  the 
Church.  Her  members  felt,  therefore,  that  they  were  . 
one  "  in  the  fellowship  of  the  Spirit,"  while  with  the 
different  sects  of  heretics  about  them,  they  held  no 
communion.  It  was  in  this  spirit  that  St.  Augustine 
defined  the  word  Catholic.  "The  Catholic  Church,'" 
said  he,  "  is  so  called,  because  it  is  spread  throughout 
the  world. "t  Again,  he  adds,  addressing  certain 
heretics — "  If  your  Church  is  Catholic,  show  me  that 
it  spreads  its  branches  throughout  the  world;  for 
such  is  the  meaning  of  the  word  Catholic.":}:  So  also 
Vincentius  of  Lerins  writes  in  the  fifth  century — 
"  The  Catholic  or  universal  doctrine  is  that  which  re- 
mains the  same  through  all  ages,  and  will  continue 
so  till  the  end  of  the  world.  He  is  a  true  Catholic, 
who  firmly  adheres  to  the  faith  which  he  knows  the 
Catholic  Church  has  universally  taught  from  the  days 
ofold."§ 

Who  then  in   this   day   are   the    Catholics  ?     We 

*  Cyprian,  de  Unit,  Eccles.  f  Epist.  170,  ad  S.  Sever. 

X  Contra  Gaudent,  1.  iii.  c.  i.  §  Commonit  ad.  Hseret.  c.  25. 

17 


258  POPULAR    OBJECTIONS 

answer,  those  who  belong  to  any  branch  of  the  origi- 
nal Church,  in  whatever  country  it  may  exist,  which 
has  retained  the  Apostolic  ministry,  and  owns  its 
subjection  to  the  Universal  Church,  rendering 
obedience  to  her  voice.  We  are  members  of  the 
Catholic  Church,  for  we  derive  our  succession  from 
Primitive  days,  and  still  hold  in  all  respects  to  "  the 
faith  once  delivered  to  the  saints."  We  recognize 
our  connection  with  the  Universal  Church  whenever 
we  repeat  the  Creeds,  or  that  declaration  in  the  Te 
Deuvi — ''The  Holy  Church  throughout  all  the  world 
doth  acknowledge  Thee." 

Our  Mother  Church  in  England  has  never  given 
up  the  tide.  "  We  hope," — says  Hooker — "  that  to 
reform  ourselves,  if  at  any  time  we  have  done  amiss, 
is  not  to  sever  ourselves  from  the  Church  we  were 
of  before.  In  the  Church  we  were,  and  we  are 
so  still."* 

This  too,  is  the  title  of  the  Greek  Cliurch,  and  of 
those  vast  and  numerous  Churches  in  the  East, 
which,  even  in  their  low  estate,  have  never  severed 
themselves  from  the  Universal  Church.  We  acknowl- 
edge, too,  as  Catholics,  the  members  of  the  Church 

*  Ecdes.  Pol.  works,  v.  i.  p.  437,  ed.  Keble.  Mr.  Palmer  has  col- 
lected many  instances  from  public  documents,  of  the  continued  use 
of  the  title  Catholic.  For  example  —  In  the  order  of  prayer  before 
sermons  in  1535,  the  preacher  was  to  "pray  for  the  whole  Catholic 
Church  of  Christ,  &c.,  and  especially  for  the  Catholic  Church  of  this 
realm,''''  and  for  King  Henry  VIII.  the  "  supreme  head  of  this  Catholic 
Church  of  England.'" — (See  Burnet,  v.  iii.  Records,  n.  29.)  In  the  act 
against  Annates,  (23  Hen.  viii.  c.  33,)  it  is  said,  that  the  King  and  all  his 
subjects,  "  as  well  spiritual  as  temporal,  be  as  obedient,  devout, 
Catholic,  and  humble  children  of  God,  and  holy  Church,  as  any 
people  1)6  within  any  realm  christened."  {Treatise  on  the  Church,  v. 
i.  p.  227.)  The  writers  of  the  Church  in  England  always  speak  in 
these  terms. 


AGAINST    THE    CHURCH.  259 

of  Rome,  within  the  bounds  of  her  own  proper 
jurisdiction,  and  when  she  does  not  put  forth  claims 
which  conflict  with  those  of  other  branches  of  the 
Church.'"  You  perceive  then,  from  this  explanation, 
how  erroneous  is  that  popular  mode  of  speech  by 
which    so  many  are  accustomed  to  confer  this  title 

*  There  are  some  writers  who  take  the  ground  that,  since  the 
Council  of  Trent,  the  Romanists  have  cut  themselves  off  from  the 
Catholic  Church,  and  are  schismatics.  This  opinion  is  supported  by 
Jewel,  Field,  and  others.  Even  Mr.  Froude,  who  has  been  accused 
of  leaning  towards  Romanism,  says — "The  Romanists  [are  not 
schismatics  in  England  and  Catholics  abroad,  but  they]  are  wretched 
Tridentines  every  where."     Remains,  v.  ii.  p.  434. 

We  have  followed,  however,  on  this  point,  the  great  body  of 
English  divines.  Hooker  calls  the  Church  of  Rome  "a  part  of  the 
house  of  God,  a  limb  of  the  visible  Church  of  Christ."  {Woj-ks,  ii. 
478.)  And  again — "We  gladly  acknowledge  them  to  be  of  the  family 
of  Jesus  Christ."  (/3/(/,  438.)  This  was  the  view  of  Laud,  Hammond, 
Bramhall,  Andrewes,  Chillingworth,  Tillotson,  Bumet,  &c.  It  is  as- 
serted  also  most  clearly  in  the  formularies  of  the  English  Church. 
Thus,  in  the  "Institutions  of  a  Christian  Man,"  signed  in  1537  by 
twenty-one  Archbishops  and  Bishops,  (among  whom  were  Cranmer, 
Latimer,  Shaxton,  Bradford,  May,  and  Cox,  all  warm  supporters  of 
the  Reformation,)  we  find  this  passage — "  Therefore  I  do  believe  that 
the  Church  of  Rome  is  not,  nor  cannot  worthily  be  called  the  Catholic 
Church,  but  only  a  particular  member  thereof.  And  I  believe  also 
that  the  said  Church  of  Rome,  with  all  the  other  particular  Churches 
in  the  world,  compacted  and  united  together,  do  make  and  constitute 
but  one  Catholic  or  Church  body."  (p.  55.)  So  again,  the  "Neces- 
sary Doctrine  and  Erudition,"  approved  by  the  Bishops  of  England, 
in  1543,  after  acknowledging  the  particular  Churches  of  England, 
Spain,  Italy,  Poland,  Portugal,  and  Rome,  adds  that  these  churches 
are  '^members  of  the  whole  Catholic  Church,  and  each  of  them  by 
himself  is  also  worthily  called  a  Catholic  Church."  (p.  248.)  We 
think,  therefore,  that  the  decision  of  the  Church  in  England,  on  this 
point,  is  clear. 

Leading  modern  writers  generally  take  the  same  view.  It  will  be 
found  expressed  in  the  works  of  Palmer,  Bp.  Whittingham,  Dr.  Hook, 
G.  S.  Faber,  and  others.  The  latter,  even  when  writing  against  the 
Romanists,  says — "  That  the  Latins  constitute  one  of  the  many 
branches  of  Christ's  Universal  Church,  I  am  far  from  wishing  to 
deny."     Diff.  of  Romanism,  pref.  xxxiii. 


26o  POPULAR    OBJECTIONS 

exclusively  upon  the  members  of  the  Romish  Church. 
"  The  name  Catholic  belongs  equally  to  all  the  mem- 
bers of  Christ's  Catholic  Church,  wherever  dispersed 
and  however  distressed.  Hence  a  name,  which  be- 
longs equally  to  all,  whether  oriental,  or  occidental, 
cannot  be  correctly  employed  as  the  special,  and 
exclusive,  and  descriptive  appellation  of  a  part  only  ; 
because  when  the  term  is  thus  used,  the  common 
character  of  CathoHcism  is  by  implication  denied  to 
every  Christian,  who  happens  not  to  be  a  member  of 
that  provincial  Western  Church  which  is  in  com- 
munion with  the  Bishop  of  Rome,  and  which 
acknowledges  him  as  its  chief  or  Patriarch."* 

Let  us  not  then  misinterpret  this  term,  or  shrink 
from  acknowledging,  that  we  "  believe  in  one  Catholic 
and  Apostolic  Church."  It  is  declaring  the  truth,  that 
we   are    no    obscure    sectf — no    mere   party   in   the 

*  Paber^s  Difficulties  of  Romanism,  pref.  xxxiii.  The  same  idea 
is  expressed  by  Dr.  Hook,  in  a  sermon  preached  before  the  Queen,  in 
the  Chapel  Royal — "  You  see  here,  by  the  way,  the  folly  (if  it  be 
not  a  sin,  for  it  is  calling  '  evil  good,  and  good  evil ')  of  styling  the 
Romish  Dissenters  in  England,  as  some  persons  in  extreme  ignorance, 
and  others  perhaps  with  bad  intentions,  do.  Catholics ;  for  this  in- 
sinuates, that  we  of  the  Church  of  England  are  heretics,  whereas  you 
have  seen  that  ours,  not  theirs,  is  the  true  and  orthodox  Church  of 
Christ  in  this  country,  the  real  Catholic  Church  in  and  of  England. 
If  they  dislike  the  name  Papist,  we  may  speak  of  them  as  Roman- 
ists, or  even  Roman  Catholics.  Roman  Catholics  they  may  be 
styled,  for  (though  schismatics  and  dissenters  in  England)  in  France 
and  England  they  belong  to  a  Church  true  by  descent,  though  corrapted 
by  Roman  or  Popish  superstitions.  A  bad  man  is  still  a  man,  and 
you  may  refuse  to  associate  with  him  before  he  reforms  ;  but  still 
you  will  never  permit  him  so  to  style  himself  a  man,  as  to  imply 
that  you  yourself  are  not  a  human  being." 

t  By  not  adhering  to  this  name  we  furnish  the  Romanist  with 
an  argument  against  us.  Thus,  Dr.  Milner,  speaking  of  the  members 
of  the  Church  in  England,  says — "  Every  time  they  address  the  God  of 
truth,  either  in  solemn  worship  or  in  private  devotion,  they  are  forced 


AGAINST    THE    CHURCH,  261 

Christian  world,  calling  ourselves  by  the  name  of 
some  human  teacher ;  but  that  we  claim  fellowship 
with  the  great  fold  of  Christ — the  communion  of  the 
faithful,  not  only  in  this  generation,  spread  every- 
where throughout  the  earth,  but  also  of  those  who, 
in  every  age  which  has  gone,  have  "  slept  in  Jesus," 
and  those  who  shall  be  united  "  with  His  body, 
which  is  the  Church,"  in  all  future  time,  even  until 
the  trump  of  the  archangel  proclaims  that  the  warfare 
of  His  followers  is  over. 

Again,  another  objection  often  urged  against  us  is 
— the  use  by  07ir  mi7iisters  of  peculiar  clerical  gar- 
ments'. In  the  English  Ritual,  published  in  1549, 
directions  are  given  on  the  subject  of  Ecclesiastical 
Vestures.  Among  these  we  find  particular  mention 
made  of  the  Albe.  This  garment,  which  is  noticed 
among  the  acts  of  the  Council  of  Narbonne,  A.  D. 
589,  was  very  similar  to  the  present  Surplice,  by 
which  name  it  began  to  be  called  about  the  twelfth 
century.*  We  will  quote  some  of  these  Rubrics  of 
1549.  "Upon  the  day  and  at  the  time  appointed 
for  the  ministration  of  the  Holy  Communion,  the 
priest  that  shall  execute  the  holy  ministry  shall  put 
upon  him  the  vesture  appointed  for  that  ministration : 
that  is  to  say,  a  luhite  albe,  plain,"  &c.  "  In  the 
saying  or  singing  of  matins  and  evensong,  baptizing 
and  burying,  the  minister,  in  parish  churches  and 
chapels  annexed  to  the  same,  shall  use  a  surpless." 

each  of  them  to  repeat,'  I  believe  in  the  Catholic  Church.'  And  yet,  if 
I  ask  any  of  them  the  question,  '  Are  you  a  catholic  ?'  he  is  sure  to 
answer  me,  '  No,  I  am  a  Protestant.'  Was  there  ever  a  more  glar- 
ing instance  of  inconsistency  and  self-condemnation  among  rational 
beings?" — End  of  Religious  Controversy,  letter  xxv. 
*  Palmer  on  the  Ritual,  v.  ii.  p.  320. 


262  POPULAR    OBJECTIONS 

Following  this  ancient  regulation  of  the  English 
Church,  we  have  adopted  the  custom  that  the  Priest, 
when  he  officiates  in  the  usual  services,  should  be 
clothed  in  a  white  linen  surplice."^  And  yet  there 
are  some  so  sensitive,  as  to  make  this  a  cause  of 
offence, 

"  It  is  used  by  the  Romanists " — we  are  told. 
And  so  it  is ;  but  if  good  in  itself,  is  this  any  reason 
for  abandoning  it  ?  Is  it  the  object  of  the  Christian 
world,  to  get  as  far  as  possible  from  the  Church  of 
Rome,  without  exercising  any  discrimination  as  to 
what  is  correct,  and  what  incorrect  in  her  rites  and 
services  ?  Why  not  then  abandon  the  custom  of 
singing,  as  a  part  of  public  worship,  because  vocal 
music  is  heard  in  her  temples — or  give  up  baptism, 
because  that  Church  has  retained  it — or  the  use  of 
any  commissioned  ministry  whatsoever,  because  she 
has  still  clung  to  the  order  of  the  priesthood. t  The 
question  is  not,  whether  it  is  a  custom  of  the  Romish 
Church,  but  whether  it  is  sanctioned  by  the  usage  of 

*  The  origin  of  this  word  is  somewhat  doubtful.  Webster,  in  his 
Dictionary,  gives  its  derivation  as  from  the  Latin  "  super  pellicium, 
above  the  robe  of  fur."  This  agrees  with  the  accountgiven  by  Durandus, 
who,  in  his  work  on  the  Divine  Offices,  written  about  the  year  1286, 
traces  up  the  etymology  of  the  word  stiperpelliceum,  to  a  custom 
which  anciently  prevailed  in  the  Church,  of  wearing  tunics  made 
from  the  skins  of  such  animals  as  the  country  furnished,  over  which 
was  cast  a  white  linen  alb  or  vest,  which  thus  received  its  name 
siiperpcllicctwi,  from  the  circumstance  of  its  being  worn  above  fur. — 
Rock's  Hiernrgia,  vol.  ii.  p.  661. 

t  We  might  find  a  fit  answer  in  the  reply  given  by  Cyprian  in 
ancient  times,  to  similar  objections — "Quid  ergo?  quia  et  honorem 
cathedrae  sacerdotalis  Novatianus  usurpat,  num  idcirco  nos  cathedrae 
renunciare  dehemus?  Aut  quia  Novatianus  altare  collocare,  et 
sacrificia  offerre  Contra  jus  nititur  ;  ab  altari  et  sacraficiis  cessare  nos 
oportet,  ne  paria  et  similia  cum  illo  celebrare  videamur ! ' ' — Epist.  aa 
yubaian  de  Haret.  rehapt. 


AGAINST    THE    CHURCH.  263 

the  ancient  Church,  and  whether  it  is  advantageous, 
as  adding  solemnity  to  the  forms  of  pubHc  worship  ? 
When  on  this,  and  other  kindred  points,  such  puerile 
objections  are  brought  forward,  instead  of  attempting 
gravely  to  meet  them,  we  feel  inclined  to  respond 
with  the  Apostolic  injunction  —  "  Brethren,  be  not 
children  in  understanding;  but  in  understanding  be 
men."* 

"  But  the  Surplice  is  not  necessary  for  the  worship 
of  God " — we  are  again  told.  Now  suppose  we 
should  carry  out  this  principle,  and  only  retain  what 
is  absolutely  and  barely  necessary ;  how  much  would 
be  left  to  us  ?  Why,  not  even  these  consecrated 
temples,  in  which  we  offer  up  our  prayers,  are  indis- 
pensable. We  might  worship  God  "  in  spirit  and  in 
truth,"  in  any  building,  however  humble.  We  might 
pour  forth  our  petitions,  where  the  dark  forests  were 
waving  around  us,  and  the  Heavens  above  formed 
our  only  canopy ;  like  the  ancient  Christians,  when  in 
days  of  persecution,  far  away  from  the  abodes  of 
men, 

"  They  shook  the  depths  of  the  desert's  gloom 
With  their  hymns  of  lofty  cheer." 

But  we  know  that  the  mind  and  the  devotional 
feelings  are  reached  through  the  outward  senses,  and 
therefore  it  is  meet  and  proper,  that  some  spot  should 
be  set  apart,  in  which  week  after  week  we  may  as- 
semble before  God.  By  being  thus  "  separated  from 
all  unhallowed,  worldly,  and  common  uses,"  it  will 
"fill  men's  minds  with  greater  reverence  for  God's 
glorious  majesty,  and  affect  their  hearts  with  more 
devotion  and    humility  in   his    service. "f     And    the 

*  I  Cor.  xiv.  20. 

t  Address  in  the  form  for  the  Consecration  of  a  Church. 


264  POPULAR    OBJECTIONS 

same  regard  for  the  principles  of  association  would 
dictate,  that  when  the  minister  of  the  Church  officiates 
in  the  solemn  rites  of  the  sanctuary,  even  his  outward 
apparel  should  declare  to  those  before  whom  he 
stands,  the  sacred  duty  in  which  he  is  engaged. 
Thus,  the  recollections  of  this  world  are  broken  in 
upon — men  forget  the  individual,  and  remember 
only  the  office  which  he  holds. 

Look  again  at  the  autliority  for  the  use  of  this 
garment,  and  the  antiquity  which  can  be  pleaded  in 
its  behalf  Under  the  Jewish  dispensation,  God  Him- 
self prescribed  with  the  utmost  minuteness,  the  dress 
of  all  who  should  minister  before  Him  in  holy  things. 
While  magnificent  robes  were  provided  for  the  High 
Priest,  the  ordinary  priests,  when  performing  service, 
were  to  wear,  "  a  white  linen  ephod."  The  Levites 
also,  who  were  singers,  were  arrayed  in  white  linen. 
And  this  continued  to  be  the  law  through  all  ages 
of  the  Jewish  state. 

The  early  apostles  being  Jev\'s,  and  thus  trained  up 
to  see  "  all  things  done  decently  and  in  order,"  it  was 
natural  that  under  the  new  dispensation  they  should 
have  continued  to  observe  the  ancient  custom  of 
appropriate  priestly  garments.  This  is  shown  by 
frequent  allusions  to  the  surplice  in  the  primitive 
writers.  Thus  it  is  said  in  the  Apostolical  Constitu- 
tions— "  Then  the  High  Priest  standing  at  the  altar 
with  the  presbyters,  makes  a  private  prayer  by  him- 
self, having  on  his  zvJdte  or  bright  vestment.'"^ 
Pontius,  in  his  account  of  St.  Cyprian's  martyrdom, 
says  that  there  was  by  chance  near  him  at  that  time 
"  a  ivhite  linen  cloth,  so  that  at  his  passion  he  seemed 

*  Lib.  viii.  ch.  12. 


AGAINST  THE  CHURCH.  265 

to  have  some  of  the  ensigns  of  the  Episcopal  honor."* 
Eusebius,  in  his  address  to  Pauhnus,  Bishop  of  Tyre, 
mentions  "  the  sacred  gown  "  and  "  the  sacerdotal 
garments  "  worn  by  Bishops  and  Priests. t  It  was 
one  of  the  charges  made  against  St  Athanasius,  that 
he  had  imposed  a  tax  upon  the  Egyptians,  to  raise  a 
fund  for  tJie  lineii  vestments  of  the  CJnirch.X  This 
fact  is  mentioned  both  by  Athanasius  himself,  and  by 
Sozomen.  We  observe  in  this,  that  the  accusation 
was  not,  that  he  used  such  vestments  in  the  Church, 
but  only  that  he  laid  a  tax  upon  the  people  to  pro- 
vide them ;  which  supposes  them  to  be  in  ordinary 
use.  St  Chrysostom  intimates  that  Deacons  wore 
this  habit  in  their  ministrations,  when  he  says,  "  their 
honor,  crown,  and  glory,  did  not  consist  so  much  in 
their  walking  about  the  Church  in  a  white  and  shining 
garment,  as  in  their  power  to  repel  unworthy  com- 
municants from  the  Lord's  table."§  The  historian 
Sozomen,  when  speaking  of  the  assault  made  upon 
the  Church  by  the  enemies  of  St.  Chrysostom,  says 
— "  The  priests  and  deacons  were  beaten  and  driven 
out  of  the  Church,  as  they  were  in  the  vestments  of 
their  ministration. "\  And  to  give  one  more  in- 
stance ;  St.  Jerome  in  the  same  sentence  both  shows 
the  ancient  use  of  the  dress,  and  reproves  the  dress, 
and  reproves  the  needless  scruples  of  those  who 
oppose  it — "What  harm  or  enmity,  I  pray,  is  it 
against  God,  if  a  Bishop,  Presbyter,  or  Deacon,  or 
any  other  of  the  Ecclesiastical  Order,  come  forth  in  a 

*  Wheatly  on  Common  Prayer,  p.  105. 

t  Eccles.  Hist.  lib.  x.  ch.  4. 

X  Bingham's  Orig.  Eccles.  lib.  xiii.  ch.  8.  sec.  2. 

§  Chrys.  Horn.  82  in  Matt.  ||  Sozom.  Lib.  11.  cap,  21. 


266  POPULAR    OBJECTIONS 

white  vestment,  when  they  minister  the  Sacra- 
ments ?"* 

And  how  suitable  is  the  color  of  this  dress  in 
which  the  priests  minister  at  the  altar !  White  has  in 
all  ages  been  the  emblem  of  innocence  and  purity. 
Therefore  it  is  that  when  in  the  book  of  Daniel,  the 
Ancient  of  Days  is  represented  as  appearing  to  the 
prophet,  we"  are  told,  that  "  His  garment  was  white 
as  snow  " — when  our  Lord  was  transfigured,  "  His 
raiment  was  white  as  the  light " — and  when  angels 
have  appeared  to  men,  they  have  always  been 
clothed  in  white  apparel. 

It  declares  the  frame  of  mind  in  which  we  should 
appear  before  God — cleansed  from  all  sin,  like  those 
whom  St.  John  saw  in  vision,  who  had  "  washed 
their  robes,  and  made  them  white  in  the  blood  of  the 
Lamb."  To  the  Lamb's  wife,  which  is  the  Church, 
we  are  told,  "  it  was  granted,  that  she  should  be 
arrayed  in  fine  linen,  clean  and  white ;  for  the  fine 
linen  is  the  righteousness  of  saints." 

And  more  than  all,  by  this  significant  emblem  we 
are  pointed  forward  to  the  glory  which  awaits  the 
ransomed.  "  They  " — declares  our  Lord — "  shall 
walk  with  me  in  white,  for  they  are  worthy.  He 
that  overcometh,  the  same  shall  be  clothed  in  white 
raiment,  and  I  will  not  blot  out  his  name  out  of  the 
book  of  life,  but  I  will  confess  his  name  before  my 
Father,  and  before  his  angels."  And  again,  the 
same  Apostle  says — "  I  beheld,  and  lo,  a  great  multi- 
tude, which  no  man  could  number,  of  all  nations,  and 
kindred,  and  people,  and  tongues,  stood  before  the 
throne,  and   before   the   Lamb,  clothed    with    white 

*  Adv.  Pelag.  lib.  i.  ch.  9.  torn.  2. 


AGAINST    THE    CHURCH.  2b J 

robes,  and  palms  in  their  hands ;  and  cried  with  a 
loud  voice,  saying,  Salvation  to  our  God  which  sitteth 
upon  the  throne,  and  unto  the  Lamb." 

Surely  then  it  is  right,  that  our  ministers,  when 
publicly  offering  prayers  to  God,  should  retain  this 
ancient  garment,  which  was  first  prescribed  by  the 
God  of  Israel  Himself — adopted  in  the  primitive 
Church — in  all  ages  the  emblem  of  devotion — and 
thus  descending  to  us,  consecrated  by  the  veneration 
of  more  than  three  thousand  years. 

But  a  third  objection  urged  against  the  Church,  is 
one  much  more  important.  It  is — that  the  terms  of 
admission  into  onr  fold  are  easy,  and  but  little  scrutiny 
-exercised.  Now,  what  is  the  door  of  admission  into 
the  Christian  Church  ?  We  answer,  of  course.  Bap- 
tism —  for  this  was  commanded  explicitly  by  our 
Lord,  as  the  right  of  entrance  into  His  Kingdom,  for 
all  who  embraced  His  doctrines.  "  Go,"  said  He, 
"  and  teach  " — or,  as  it  might  be  translated — "  make 
disciples  of  all  nations,  baptizing  them  in  the  name 
of  the  Father,  and  of  the  Son,  and  of  the  Holy 
Ghost."  Every  person,  therefore,  who  has  been 
baptized,  is  as  much  a  member  of  the  Church  as  he 
ever  can  be.  The  question.  Whether  after  this  he 
walks  worthy  of  his  high  calling  ?  opens  an  entirely 
different  subject,  and  one,  the  responsibility  of  which 
rests  upon  himself,  not  upon  the  Church. 

But  let  us  see  whether  the  Church  does  lightly  re- 
ceive her  members  in  Baptism.  Take  up  the  ques- 
tions proposed  to  one  who  is  a  candidate  for  that 
Holy  Rite,  and  the  mere  reading  of  them  will  at  once 
cause  this  objection  to  vanish.  What  then  does  she 
require  him  to  believe,   on  entering  her  fold  ?     The 


268  pofulAr  objections 

question  addressed  to  him  is — "Dost  thou  beHeve  all 
the  Articles  of  the  Christian  faith,  as  contained  in  the 
Apostles'  Creed  ?"  Now,  you  well  know  the  simple, 
comprehensive  Creed  called  by  this  name,  and  which 
is  repeated  in  our  services  every  time  we  meet  It 
contains  a  brief  summary  of  all  the  cardinal  doctrines 
of  our  faith — of  all  which  are  to  be  believed,  as 
necessary  to  salvation.  These  are  to  be  received 
heartily  and  truly — in  their  literal  meaning,  as  they 
have  always  been  explained  and  interpreted  by  the 
Church.* 

And  is  not  this  all  that  we  can  lawfully  require  of 
our  members?  Have  we  any  right  to  force  them 
to  subscribe  to  minute  points  of  abstruse  theology,  not 
fully  proved  from  Scripture,  and  which  are  often,  to 
say  the  least,  questionable  ?  No  —  the  very  sim- 
plicity of  this  Creed — and  it  has  been  used  for  this 
purpose  in  all  ages  of  the  Church — is  its  strong 
recommendation.  It  can  be  clearly  understood  by 
all — even  tlie  unlettered  and  the  child.  Regulating 
essential  matters,  it  places  such  restrictions  on  its 
members  as  prevent  them  from  straying  beyond  the 
bounds  of  orthodoxy,  while  on  the  other  hand,  in 
those  things  which  are  unessential,  where  different 
minds  will  necessarily  take  different  views,  it  leaves 
room    for  a  liberal  variation  of  opinion.     Thus  are 

*  It  is  evident,  that  a  person  may  sometimes  be  able  to  repeat  the 
Creed  and  profess  his  belief  in  its  articles,,  while  at  the  same  time  he 
gives  his  own  interpretation  to  some  of  them,  and  philosophizes  away 
their  natural  sense.  In  this  way  Arius  was  willing  to  subscribe  to 
the  Apostles'  Creed,  while  denying  the  true  and  proper  divinity  of 
our  Lord.  The  Church  therefore  obviates  this  difficulty  by  having 
from  the  earliest  age  explained  the  creed  in  her  formularies,  and  her 
members  must  hold  it  in  the  honest  sense  she  does,  or  be  counted 
heretics. 


AGAINST  THE   CHURCH.  269 

avoided  those  endless  disputes  on  the  deep  doctrines 
of  our  faith,  which  so  often  disturb  the  peace  of  those 
denominations  around  us,  and  even  rend  them 
asunder  into  separate  bodies,  while  attempting  in 
every  minute  particular  to  bring  all  men  down  to  one 
precise  standard. 

Experience,  too,  has  proved  that  this  system  is  the 
best  in  its  practical  effects,  to  preserve  purity  in 
doctrine.  Let  one  come  to  us  who  has  erred  from 
the  faith — who  disbelieves,  for  example,  in  the 
Divinity  of  our  Lord — and  by  applying  the  test  of 
this  Creed,  (as  interpreted  by  the  Nicene  Creed,) 
we  debar  him  from  the  Church  as  a  heretic.  There 
is,  therefore,  as  much  sound  orthodoxy  within  our 
ranks,  as  within  the  ranlcs  of  any  of  those  who 
endeavor  to  enter  into  a  more  minute  investigation 
of  doctrinal  belief  This  however  is  but  one  require- 
ment at  Baptism,  and  concerns  the  intellect  only. 
There  are  others  also,  Vv^hich  refer  directly  to  the  heart 
and  the  life. 

Another  question  then  is — "  Dost  thou  renounce 
the  devil  and  all  his  works,  the  vain  pomp  and  glory 
of  the  world,  with  all  covetous  desires  of  the  same, 
and  the  sinful  desires  of  the  flesh ;  so  that  thou  wilt 
not  follow  nor  be  led  by  them  ?"  To  which,  the 
answer  is  given — "  I  renounce  them  all ;  and,  by 
God's  help,  will  endeavor  not  to  follow  nor  be  led  by 
them."  Now,  how  can  a  more  perfect  vow  of  re- 
nunciation be  uttered  ?  The  individual  who  thus 
wishes  to  "put  on  Christ" — standing  here  before 
God,  and  in  the  presence  of  His  people,  looks  back 
at  a  world,  of  sin,  with  which  heretofore  he  has  been 
leagued,  and  then  solemnly  abandons  it ;  recording 


2  70  POPULAR    OBJECTIONS 

his  decision,  that  for  the  future  he  "  will  not  follow 
nor  be  led  by  it." 

But  the  Church  even  goes  farther,  and  puts  one 
more  question — "  Wilt  thou  then  obediently  keep 
God's  holy  will  and  commandments,  and  walk  in  the 
same  all  the  days  of  thy  life  ?"  To  which  the  required 
answer  is,  "  I  will,  by  God's  help."  Let  me  ask  you, 
therefore,  to  weigh  these  pledges,  and  then  tell  me, 
where  is  there  any  body  of  persons  calling  themselves 
Christians,  who  more  strictly  oblige  those  uniting 
with  them  to  discard  an  evil  world,  and  devote  them- 
selves to  the  service  of  God  ?  How  futile  then  is 
this  objection  against  us  ! 

Again,  a  fourth  objection  often  urged  is — that  we 
receive  pei'sons  lightly  and  hastily  to  the  Sacrament 
of  the  Lord's  Slipper.  Look  then  at  our  Communion 
Service,  and  see  its  requirements.  Like  those  in  the 
Baptismal  vows,  they  also  are  simple,  yet  compre- 
hensive. The  priest  is  directed  to  say — "  Dearly 
beloved  in  the  Lord,  ye  who  mind  to  come  to  the 
Holy  Communion  of  the  Body  and  Blood  of  our 
Saviour  Christ,  must  consider  how  St.  Paul  exhorteth 
all  persons  diligently  to  try  and  examine  themselves, 
before  they  presume  to  eat  of  that  bread,  and  drink 
of  that  cup.  For  as  the  benefit  is  great,  if  with  a 
true  penitent  heart  and  lively  faith  we  receive 
that  holy  sacrament,  so  is  the  danger  great,  if  we  re- 
ceive the  same  unworthily.  Judge  therefore  your- 
selves, brethren,  that  ye  be  not  judged  of  the  Lord ; 
repent  ye  truly  for  your  sins  past ;  have  a  lively  and 
steadfast  faith  in  Christ  our  Saviour;  amend  your 
lives,  and  be  in  perfect  charity  with  all  men ;  so  shall 
ye  be  meet  partakers  of  those  holy  mysteries."     Can 


AGAINST    THE    CHURCH.  27 1 

any  one,  then,  hearing  this  solemn  invitation,  and 
reahzing  its  force,  come  forward  Hghtly  ?  Or,  sup- 
posing that  he  should  do  so,  is  the  Church  to  be 
blamed  ?  Certainly  not ;  he  has  the  requirements 
before  him,  and  the  responsibility  rests  with  himself. 

The  rule  then  with  us  is  this.  Since  all  baptized 
persons  are  members  of  the  Church,  we  regard  them 
as  having  a  right  to  come  forward  to  Communion,  if 
they  are  giving  evidence  by  their  daily  walk,  of  the 
existence  of  Christian  character.  If,  however,  they 
have  been  baptized  in  infancy,  there  is  yet  a  prepara- 
tory step  which  they  must  take.  They  must  first 
publicly  assume  those  vows  for  themselves,  or  at 
least  show  their  willingness  to  do  so.  This,  as  we 
have  shown  in  the  last  lecture,  takes  place  at  Con- 
firmation. And  the  Rubric  declares: — "  There  shall 
none  be  admitted  to  the  Holy  Communion,  until 
such  time  as  he  be  confirmed,  or  be  ready  and 
desirous  to  be  confirmed." 

Is  it  not  evident,  therefore,  that  any  one  who  can 
go  through  the  solemn  service  by  which  he  thus 
publicly  assumes  and  ratifies  his  Baptismal  vows, 
devoting  himself  willingly  to  the  service  of  God, 
must  be  prepared  for  the  Holy  Communion  ?  At  all 
events,  we  can  have  no  better  security  with  regard  to 
him,  than  this  ordeal.  If,  therefore,  after  seriously 
weighing  the  matter,  he  has  passed  through  it,  or 
professes  to  be  ready  to  pass  through  it,  we  have  no 
right  to  debar  him  from  the  Christian  privilege 
which  his  Lord  has  provided,  of  partaking  of  His 
body  and  blood.  The  Church,  therefore,  takes  the 
power  out  of  the  hands  of  her  ministers,  and  throws 
the  responsibility  upon  the  individual  himself     She 


2  72  POPULAR    OBJECTIONS 

bids  us  explain  to  him  this  holy  srite,  lay  the  re- 
quirements before  him,  and  then  he  is  left  to  form 
his  own  decision.  We  may  advise  him,  but  we 
have  no  power  to  investigate  his  heart,  or  to  pene- 
trate into  the  nature  of  those  hidden,  sacred  feelings, 
which  rest  between  his  God  and  himself. 

The  only  case  in  which  we  have  authority  to 
debar  an  individual  from  communion  is,  (as  stated  in 
the  Rubric,)  "  if  among  those  who  come  to  be  par- 
takers of  the  Holy  Communion,  the  minister  shall 
know  any  to  be  an  open  and  notorious  evil  liver,  or 
to  have  done  any  wrong  to  his  neighbors  by  word  or 
deed,  so  that  the  congregation  be  thereby  offended ; 
he  shall  advertise  him,  that  he  presume  not  to  come 
to  the  Lord's  table,  until  he  have  openly  declared 
himself  to  have  repented  and  amended  his  former 
evil  life,  that  the  congregation  may  thereby  be  satis- 
fied ;  and  that  he  hath  recompensed  the  parties  to 
whom  he  hath  done  wrong;  or  at  least  declare  him- 
self to  be  in  full  purpose  to  do  so,  as  soon  as  he  con- 
veniently may.  The  same  order  shall  the  minister 
use  with  those,  betwixt  whom  he  perceiveth  malice 
and  hatred  to  reign;  not  suffering  them  to  be  par- 
takers of  the  Lord's  Table,  until  he  know  them  to  be 
reconciled.  And  if  one  of  the  parties  so  at  variance 
be  content  to  forgive  from  the  bottom  of  his  heart 
all  that  the  other  hath  trespassed  against  him,  and  to 
make  amends  for  that  wherein  he  himself  hath 
offended  ;  and  the  other  party  will  not  be  persuaded 
to  a  godly  unity,  but  remain  still  in  his  frowardness 
and  malice ;  the  minister  in  that  case  ought  to  admit 
the  penitent  person  to  the  Holy  Communion,  and  not 
him  that  is  obstinate.      Provided  that  every  minis- 


AGAINST    THE    CHURCH.  273 

ter  so  repelling  any,  as  is  herein  specified,  shall  be 
obliged  to  give  an  account  of  the  same  to  the  ordinary, 
as  soon  as  conveniently  may  be."  In  these  cases,  we 
have  of  course  the  overt  act— the  outward  conduct — 
by  which  to  judge.  There  can,  therefore,  be  no 
doubt  on  the  subject,  and  we  act  with  certainty  in 
cutting  off  the  unworthy  member. 

And  now,  is  not  this  reasonable  ?  If  an  individual 
has  been  by  baptism  solemnly  admitted  into  the 
Church  of  Christ — unless  he  should  show  beyond 
doubt,  by  his  outward  conduct,  that  he  is  unworthy 
of  the  privilege — have  I,  or  any  one  else,  authority 
to  debar  him  from  a  Sacrament  which  his  Lord  has 
provided  to  sustain  and  strengthen  him  ?  After  the 
Jews  were  admitted  into  their  Church  by  circum- 
cision, was  any  priest  gifted  with  power  to  prevent 
tliem  from  partaking  of  the  Passover,  until  he  should 
think  them  prepared  ?  And  if  the  baptized  Christian, 
in  addition  to  this,  after  having  arrived  at  years  of 
discretion,  professes  his  willingness  to  stand  up  publicly 
before  the  Church  in  Confirmation,  to  take  these  sol- 
emn baptismal  vows  upon  himself,  and  then  is  able 
also,  after  listening  to  the  searching  test  proposed  in 
our  Communion  service,  to  come  forward,  where  is 
the  fallible  man  who  shall  dare  to  read  his  heart,  and 
say  that  he  is  not  prepared  ?  By  what  examination 
can  we  arrive  at  any  certainty  on  this  point  ?  An 
individual  may  have  the  grace  of  God  in  his  heart, 
and  yet  be  unable  clearly  to  disclose  his  feelings,  or 
embody  them  in  language.  On  the  other  hand,  the 
self- deceiver,  or  the  wilful  hypocrite,  may  be  gifted 
with  a  volubility  which  shall  set  the  most  severe 
scrutiny  at  defiance.  Each  minister  of  the  Church 
18 


2  74  POPULAR    OBJECTIONS 

has,  therefore,  reason  to  be  thankful  that  this  power 
rests  not  in  his  hands,  lest  at  the  last  day  it  might 
appear  that  in  some  cases  he  had  been  mistaken,  and 
had  debarred  from  that  spiritual  feast  some  of  the 
little  ones  of  Christ's  flock.  We  may  well  shrink 
from  this  responsibility,  and  rejoice  that  it  is  taken 
away  from  us,  and  placed  upon  the  individuals  them- 
selves who  wish  to  come  forward. 

Another  objection  which  it  may  be  well  briefly  to 
notice  is — tliat  the  Church  does  not  believe  in  what  is 
called  "  a  change  of  heart."  To  this  we  reply,  that 
she  nowhere,  it  is  true,  uses  this  term  in  her  formu- 
laries. Neither,  indeed,  is  it  to  be  found  in  the  Bible. 
It  is  not,  of  course,  to  be  expected  that  a  Liturgy 
framed  more  than  a  thousand  years  ago  should  now 
have  engrafted  upon  its  rich  and  beautiful  services, 
the  shifting,  changing  phraseology,  with  which  the 
religious  world  around  chooses  in  this  day  to  express 
its  views.  Her  object  rather  is,  to  shun  every  thing 
modern  and  evanescent,  and  to  cleave  steadfastly  to 
those  old  expressions  which,  drawn  originally  from 
the  solemn  language  of  Holy  Writ,  have  come  down 
generation  after  generation  among  her  children, 
always  "  familiar  in  their  mouths  as  household  words." 

But  that  the  Church  requires  her  children  to  be 
renewed,  renovated,  and  sanctified  by  the  Holy 
Ghost,  as  requisite  for  membership  with  her,  while 
militant  here,  or  in  glory  hereafter,  no  one  can  doubt 
who  has  ever  read  her  offices.  She  every  where 
teaches  the  truth,  that  "  without  holiness  no  man 
shall  see  the  Lord."  She  constantly  seeks  to  draw 
men  away  from  dependence  on  their  own  changing 
feelings,  or  the  delusive  visions  of  the  imagination. 


AGAINST    THE    CHURCH.  275 

She  presents  before  them  tests  of  Christian  character 
which  are  real  and  tangible,  calling  them  to  self- 
denial  and  a  holy  life.  On  this  principle  every  page 
of  our  Prayer- Book  has  been  framed,  and  we  might 
prove  it  from  each  of  her  services,  or  from  the  general 
spirit  and  tenor  of  her  prayers.  We  content  our- 
selves, however,  with  merely  quoting  the  collect  for 
Ash-Wednesday — "  Almighty  and  Everlasting  God, 
who  hatest  nothing  that  Thou  hast  made,  and  dost 
forgive  the  sins  of  all  those  who  are  penitent ;  create 
and  make  in  tis  nezv  and  contrite  hearts,  that  we, 
worthily  lamenting  our  sins,  and  acknowledging  our 
wretchedness,  may  obtain  of  Thee,  the  God  of  all 
mercy,  perfect  remission  and  forgiveness,  through 
Jesus  Christ  our  Lord." 

There  is  but  one  more  objection  which  our  limits 
will  allow  us  to  bring  forward.  It  is — that  the  stand- 
ard of  religious  feeling  is  low  among  the  members  of 
the  Chnrch.  How  this  conclusion  is  reached,  I  know 
not;  for  I  cannot  perceive  but  that  they  walk  as 
consistently  as  others,  who  are  called  by  a  different 
name.  It  is  a  question,  therefore,  entirely  intangible, 
and  I  cannot  pretend  to  discuss  the  amount  of  religion 
among  the  members  of  the  Church,  as  compared  with 
other  religious  bodies  around,  for  God  has  not  given 
me  the  power  thus  to  judge  the  heart.  Neither  can 
I  presume  to  forestall  His  final  sentence,  and  decide 
on  the  spiritual  condition  of  my  neighbors.  "  For 
we  dare  not  make  ourselves  of  the  number,  or  com- 
pare ourselves  with  some  that  commend  themselves  ; 
but  they,  measuring  themselves  by  themselves,  and 
comparing  themselves    among    themselves,  are  not 


276  POPULAR    OBJECTIONS 

wise.""  On  such  topics  the  Christian  rule  is — to  fear 
everything  for  ourselves,  and  to  hope  everything  for 
others.  We  would  merely  warn  you,  however,  that 
talking  about  religion,  is  not  religion  itself;  and  that 
there  is  a  wide  difference  between  possessing  an 
elevated  degree  of  devotion,  and  being  familiar  with 
its  language,  and  having  it  ever  on  our  lips.  The 
Church  tells  her  members,  that  their  daily  lives  must 
be  the  test — that  in  silence  and  quiet  they  must,  by 
the  aid  of  God's  grace,  train  themselves  up  for 
Heaven ;  and  not  be  forming  erroneous  conclusions 
with  respect  to  others.  Her  direction  is  that  which 
was  once  given  by  an  Apostle — "  Judge  nothing 
before  the  time,  until  the  Lord  come." 

In  such  cases,  it  is  well  to  follow  that  proverb  given 
by  Solomon — "  Let  another  man  praise  thee,  and 
not  thine  own  mouth ;  a  stranger,  and  not  thine 
own  lips."  What,  then,  is  the  reputation  of 
the  Church  with  those  whose  opinion  is  worth 
heeding  ?  Has  she  "  a  good  report  of  them  which 
are  without  ?"  We  know  that  the  storm  of  vituper- 
ation is  constantly  directed  against  her,  yet  amidst 
the  uproar  we  can  gather  the  testimony  of  the  more 
thoughtful  and  considerate.  Let  us  attempt  then  to 
do  so.  The  Puritans  of  New  England — the  first 
settlers  of  Massachusetts — are  generally  quoted,  as 
having  been  arrayed  in  deadly  hostility  against  the 
Church  of  England.  We  are  told  that  they  were 
driven  from  their  own  pleasant  homes  by  religious 
corruption  and  ecclesiastical  tyranny  ;  and  obliged  to 
fly  to  the  wilderness  of  this  western  world,  that  here 
they    might  worship  God  in  purity.     Was  this  the 

*  2  Cor.  X.  12. 


AGAINST  THE  CHURCH.  Z^J 

case  ?  We  can  answer  the  question  by  referring  to 
tlie  letter  written  by  the  leading  men  in  that  enter- 
prise, "aboored  the  Arbella,  April  7,  1630,"  and 
signed  by  Gov,  John  Winthrop,  Rich.  Saltonstall, 
Charles  Fines,  Isaac  Johnson,  Tho.  Dudley,  William 
Coddington,  Geo.  Phillips,  &c.,  &c.  As  they  were 
about  to  launch  forth  upon  the  deep,  and  direct  their 
course  for  that  "  rock-bound  coast "  which  was  to 
be  their  future  home,  they  once  more  looked  back, 
and  sent  their  parting  farewell  to  the  Church  they 
were  leaving.  From  her  care  they  had  voluntarily 
cut  themselves  off.  If  formerly  oppressed  by  her, 
they  had  now  nothing  more  to  fear.  What,  then, 
were  their  emotions  ?  As  they  listened  to  the  surg- 
ing sea  on  whose  bosom  they  were  soon  to  be  tossing, 
did  no  sound  of  the  sweet  anthems  of  their  ancient 
mother  come  back,  and  seem  to  mingle  with  the 
sighing  of  the  wild  winds  which  were  sweeping 
around  them  ?  Did  there  not  flit  across  the  eyes  of 
any  of  those  stern  men,  a  bright  vision  of  the  old 
Parish  Church,  at  whose  font  he  had  been  baptized 
— at  whose  altar  he  had  received  his  bride — and 
within  the  shadow  of  whose  walls  his  forefathers 
were  sleeping  ?  Did  they  not  realize,  that  the  very 
strength  which  now  upheld  them  in  their  hours  of 
darkness,  had  been  gathered  in  her  courts  ?  Such  is 
the  inference  we  draw  from  their  address,  entitled — 

The  Jmmble  request  of  his  Majesties  loyall  sjibjects, 
the  Governor  and  the  Company  late  gone  for  Nezu- 
England  ;  to  the  rest  of  their  Brethren  in  and  of 
the  Church  of  England. 

"  Reverend  Fathers  and  Brethren,  ....   We 
desire  you  would  be  pleased  to  take  notice  of  the 


278  POPULAR    OBJECTIONS 

principals,  and  body  of  our  Company,  as  those  who 
esteem  it  our  honour  to  call  the  Church  of  England, 
from  whence  wee  rise,  our  deare  mother,  and  cannot 
part  from  our  native  countrie,  where  she  specially 
resideth,  without  much  sadness  of  heart,  and  many 
tears  in  our  eyes  ;  ever  acknotvledging  that  such  hope 
and  part  as  we  have  obtained  in  the  common  salvation, 
zue  have  received  in  her  bosonie,  and  siickt  it  from  her 
breasts :  wee  leave  it  not,  therefore,  as  loathing  that 
milk  wherewith  we  were  nourished  there,  but,  bless- 
ing God  for  the  parentage  and  education,  as  members 
of  the  same  body,  shall  alwayes  rejoice  in  her  good, 
and  unfainedly  grieve  for  any  sorrow  that  shall  ever 
betide  her,  and  while  we  have  breath,  syncerely 
desire  and  indeavour  the  continuance  and  abundance 
of  her  welfare,  with  the  enlargement  of  her  bounds  in 

the  Kingdom  of  Christ  Jesus So  farre 

as  God  shall  enable  us,  we  will  give  him  no  rest  in 
your  behalfes  ;  wishing  our  heads  and  hearts  may  be 
as  fountaines  of  tears  for  your  everlasting  welfare, 
when  wee  shall  be  in  our  poore  cottages  in  the  wilder- 
nesse,  overshadowed  with  the  Spirit  of  supplication, 
through  the  manifold  necessities  and  tribulations  which 
may  not  altogether  unexpectedly,  nor,  we  hope,  un- 
profitably,  befall  us.  And  so,  commending  you  to 
the  grace  of  God  in  Christ,  wee  shall  ever  rest, 

"Your  assured  friends  and  Brethren."* 

How  beautiful  is  this  testimony  1  thus  acknowl- 
edging gratefully  the  spiritual  benefits  they  had 
received  within  the  fold  of  our  Mother  Church — 
ascribing  to  the  purity  of  her  faith  and  the  soundness 
*  Gov.  Hutchinson's  Hist,  of  Massachusetts,  (Appendix,  No.  i,) 
V.  i.  p.  431- 


AGAINST    THE    CHURCH.  279 

of  her  instructions,  the  hope  of  everlasting  life  which 
they  then  enjoyed — and  praying  earnestly  for  the 
enlargement  of  her  bounds.  How  do  their  words  re- 
buke the  carping  spirit  of  too  many  among  their 
descendants  ! 

Our  next  witness  is  Dr.  Adam  Clarke,   the  author 
of  the  Commentary   on  the  Bible,  and  one  of  the 
brightest    lights  of  the  Methodist  connection.      "  I 
consider  " — he  says — "  the  Church  of  England,   the 
purest  national  Church  in  the  world.     I  was  brought 
up  in  its  bosom.     I  was  intended  for  its  ministry.     I 
have  been  a  Methodist  for  half  a  century.     I  have 
been  a  preacher  for  forty-three   years.     And   I  am 
greatly  deceived  indeed,   if  I   be  not,  without  any 
abatement,    a  thorough  member  of  the   Church  of 
England.     Its    doctrines    and  its  sacraments,  which 
constitute  the  essence  of  a  Church,  I   hold  consci- 
entiously as  it  holds  them.     I  reverence  the   Liturgy 
next  to  the  Bible.     I  proclaim  its  doctrines  and  ad- 
minister its  sacraments,  not  only  in  the  same  spirit  in 
which  it  holds  and  administers  them,  but  also  in  the 
same  words  or  form.     I  also    reverence  its  orders, 
and  highly  esteem  its  hierarchy,   and  have    not    a 
particle  of  a  dissenter  in  me  ;  though  I  love  and  esteem 
all    good    men   and  able  ministers  wherever  I   find 
them.     But  I  preach,  and  have  long  preached,  with- 
out any  kind  of  Episcopal  orders.     My  family  fell 
into  decay,  and  my  education  was  left  imperfect.     I 
would  greatly  have  preferred  the  hands  of  the  Bishop, 
but  not  having  gone  through  the  regular  courses,   I 
could  not  claim  it.     Even  now,  at  this  age   of  com- 
parative  decrepitude,   I  would  rejoice  to  have  that 
ordination,  if  I  might,  with  it,  have  the  full  liberty  to 


28o  POPULAR    OBJECTIONS 

preach  Jesus,  wherever  I  could  find  souls  perishing 

for  lack  of  knowledge The  Church  has  our 

warm  attachment,  and  if  the  time  should  ever  come, 
which  Dieu  ne  plaise  !  that  the  bodies  of  the  various 
dissenters  were  to  rise  up  against  the  Church,  the 
vast  bodies  of  Methodists  would  not  hesitate  to  be 
your  light  infantry."* 

Hear  also  the  sentiments  of  the  celebrated  Dr. 
Chalmers  of  Scotland — "  There  are  many  who  look 
with  an  evil  eye  to  the  endowments  of  the  English 
Church,  and  to  the  indolence  of  her  dignitaries.  But 
to  that  Church,  the  theological  literature  of  our 
nation  stands  indebted  for  her  best  acquisitions.  And 
we  hold  it  a  refreshing  spectacle,  at  any  time  that 
meagre  Socinianism  pours  forth  a  new  supply  of  flip- 
pancies and  errors,  when  we  behold,  as  we  have 
often  done,  an  armed  champion  come  forth  in  full 
equipment,  from  some  high  and  lettered  retreat  of 
that  noble  hierarchy.  Nor  can  we  grudge  her  the 
wealth  of  her  endowments,  when  we  think  how  well, 
under  her  venerable  auspices,  the  battles  of  orthodoxy 
have  been  fought;  that,  in  this  holy  warfare,  they 
are  her  sons  and  her  scholars,  who  are  ever  foremost 
in  the  field,  ready  at  all  times  to  face  the  threatened 
mischief,  and  by  the  weight  of  their  erudition  to 
overthrow  it."t 

Similar  to  this  is  the  testimony  of  another  in  the 
same  land — "  Thus  much  an  attached  Presbyterian 
may  sincerely  and  readily  say  of  the  Church  of 
England :  It  is  a  noble  and  venerable  hierarchy. 
Its  foundations  are  laid  deep  in  the  old  feelings  of  the 
people.     Its  clergy,  mingling  the  accomplishments  of 

*  Christian  Guardian,  Dec.  1832.       \  Quarterly  Review,  Dec.  1832. 


AGAINST    THE    CHURCH.  28 1 

the  aristocracy  with  the  condescension  of  Christian 
pastors,  rivet  together  the  different  ranks  of  society, 
as  with  crossing  bars  of  iron.  Its  bishops  have  ex- 
hibited, many  of  them,  the  pomp  of  the  prelate  in 
beautiful  unison  with  the  spirit  of  Christ's  meekest 
martyr.  Its  massive  learning  is  the  bulwark  of 
Christianity.  Its  exquisite  Liturgy,  second  in  divine 
composition  only  to  Scripture  itself,  ready  at  all  times 
to  supply  the  needs  of  the  fainting  soul,  and  fitted,  in 
its  comprehensive  devotions,  aptly  to  embody  every 
different  individual  aspiration,  binds  in  one  chain  of 
prayer,  the  hearts  of  its  members,  and  the  hearts  of 
generation  after  generation.  From  its  pulpits,  no 
longer  occupied  by  slumbering  watchmen,  the  true 
doctrines  of  the  Cross  are  proclaimed,  as  with  the 
sound  of  a  trumpet.  The  costliest  offerings  for  the 
cause  of  Christ  are  poured  in  generous  profusion  into 
the  treasury.  The  zeal  of  the  missionary,  that  finest 
token  of  apostolic  origin,  has  awoke  within  its  bosom ; 
and  bishops  are  going  forth,  making  of  the  crosier  a 
pilgrim  staff,  in  order  to  proclaim  amongst  the 
Gentiles  the  good  tidings  of  salvation.  Well  might 
the  members  of  any  other  communion  excuse  the 
generous  feeling  which  would  awake  those  words  of 
holy  writ,  concerning  her  whom  the  best  of  her  sons 
have  rejoiced  to  call  their  Mother  Church  of  England, 
'  Many  daughters  have  done  virtuously,  but  thou  ex- 
cellest  them  all.'  "* 

And  such  also  is  the  feeling  of  many  in  our  own 
country,  who,  although  arrayed  against  us,  can  yet 
acknowledge  the  beauty  of  the  Church's  system,  and 

*  A  Tract  for  the  Times,  by  William  Penny,  Advocate,  of  Edin- 
burgh. 


282  POPULAR    OBJECTIONS 

pay  their  proper  tribute  to  the  services  she  has 
rendered  the  world.  Read  for  example  the  words  of 
Dr.  Barnes  of  Philadelphia — the  more  valuable  be- 
cause written  in  the  midst  of  a  controversy.  "  We 
have  no  war  to  wage  with  Episcopacy.  We  know, 
we  deeply  feel,  that  much  may  be  said  in  favor  of  it, 
apart  from  the  claim  which  has  been  set  up  for  its 
authority  from  the  New  Testament.  Its  past  history, 
in  some  respects,  makes  us  weep ;  in  others,  it  is  the 

source  of  sincere  rejoicing  and  praise We 

associate  it  with  the  brightest  and  happiest  days  of 
religion,  and  liberty,  and  literature,  and  law.  We 
remember  that  it  was  under  the  Episcopacy  that  the 
Church  in  England  took  its  firm  stand  against  the 
Papacy ;  and  that  this  was  its  form  when  Zion  rose 
to  light  and  splendor,  from  the  dark  night  of  ages. 
We  remember  the  name  of  Cranmer — Cranmer,  first 
in  many  respects  among  the  Reformers ;  that  it  was 
by  his  steady  and  unerring  hand,  that  under  God, 
the  pure  Church  of  the  Saviour  was  conducted 
through  the  agitating  and  distressing  times  of  Henry 
VIII.  We  remember  that  God  watched  over  that 
wonderful  man !  that  He  gave  this  distinguished 
prelate  access  to  the  heart  of  one  of  the  most  capri- 
cious, cruel,  inexorable,  bloodthirsty  and  licentious 
monarchs  that  has  disgraced  the  world ;  that  God, 
for  the  sake  of  Cranmer  and  His  Church,  conducted 
Henry,  as  '  by  a  hook  in  the  nose,'  and  made  him 
faithful  to  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  when  faith- 
ful to  none  else  ;  so  that,  perhaps,  the  only  redeeming 
trait  in  the  character  of  Henry,  is  his  fidelity  to  this 
first  British  prelate  under  the  Reformation.  The 
world  will  not  soon  forget  the  names  of  Latimer,  and 


AGAINST    THE    CHURCH.  283 

Ridley,  and  Rogers,  and  Bradford  ;  names  associated 
in  the  feelings  of  Christians,  with  the  long  list  of 
ancient  confessors  *  of  whom  the  world  was  not 
worthy,'  and  who  did  honor  to  entire  ages  of  man- 
kind, by  sealing  their  attachment  to  the  Son  of  God 
on  the  rack,  or  amid  the  flames.  Nor  can  we  forget 
that  we  owe  to  Episcopacy  that  which  fills  our  minds 
with  gratitude  and  praise,  when  we  look  for  example 
of  consecrated  talent,  and  elegant  literature,  and 
humble,  devoted  piety.  While  men  honor  elevated 
Christian  feeling ;  while  they  revere  sound  learning, 
while  they  render  tribute  to  clear  and  profound 
reasoning,  they  will  not  forget  the  names  of  Barrow 
and  Taylor,  of  Tillotson,  and  Hooker,  and  Butler ; 
and  when  they  think  of  humble,  pure,  sweet,  heavenly 
piety,  their  minds  will  recur  instinctively  to  the  name 
of  Leighton.  Such  names,  with  a  host  of  others,  do 
honor  to  the  world.  When  we  think  of  them  we 
have  it  not  in  our  hearts  to  utter  one  word  against  a 
Church  which  has  thus  done  honor  to  our  race,  and 
to  our  common  Christianity. 

"  Such  we  wish  Episcopacy  still  to  be.  We  have 
always  thought  that  there  are  Christian  minds  and 
hearts  that  would  find  more  edification  in  the  forms 
of  worship  in  that  Church,  than  in  any  other.  We 
regard  it  as  adapted  to  call  forth  Christian  energy, 
that  might  otherwise  be  dormant We  our- 
selves could  live  and  labor,  in  friendliness  and  love, 
in  the  bosom  of  the  Episcopal  Church.  While  we 
have  an  honest  preference  for  another  department  of 
the  great  field  of  Christian  action;  while  providen- 
tial circumstances,  and  the  suggestions  of  our  own 
hearts  and  minds,  have  conducted   us  to  a  different 


284  POPULAR    OBJECTIONS 

field  of  labor ;  we  have  never  doubted  that  many  of 
the  purest  flames  of  devotion  that  rise  from  the  earth, 
ascend  from  the  altars  of  the  Episcopal  Church,  and 
that  many  of  the  purest  spirits  that  the  earth  contains 
minister  at  those  altars,  or  breathe  forth  their  prayers 
and  praises  in  language  consecrated  by  the  use  of 
piety  for  centuries."* 

"  She  [the  Church]  is  consolidated ;  well  mar- 
shalled :  under  an  efficient  system  of  laws ;  and 
pre-eminently  fitted  for  powerful  action  in  the  field 
of  Christian  warfare.  We  desire  to  see  her  what  the 
Macedonian  phalanx  was  in  the  ancient  army ;  with 
her  dense,  solid  organization,  with  her  unity  of  move- 
ment, with  her  power  of  maintaining  the  position 
which  she  takes,  and  with  her  eminent  ability  to 
advance  the  cause  of  sacred  learning,  and  the  love  of 
order  and  of  law,  attending  or  leading  all  other 
Churches  in  the  conquests  of  redemption  in  an  alien- 
ated world.  We  would  ever  rejoice  to  see  her  who 
was  first  in  the  field  at  the  Reformation  in  England, 
first  also  in  the  field  when  the  Son  of  God  shall 
come  to  take  to  Himself  His  great  power." 

"  We  remember  the  former  services  which  the 
Episcopal  Church  rendered  to  the  cause  of  truth, 
and  of  the  world's  redemption ;  we  remember  the 
bright  and  ever-living  lights  of  truth,  which  her 
clergy  and  her  illustrious  laymen  have  in  other  times 
enkindled  in  the  darkness  of  this  world's  history,  and 
which  continue  to  pour  their  pure  and  steady  lustre 
on  the  literature,  the  laws,  and  the  customs  of  the 
Christian  world ;  and  we  trust  the  day  will  never 
come,  when  our  own  bosoms  or  the  bosoms  of  Chris- 

*  Episcopacy  Examined,  pp.  89 — 91. 


AGAINST    THE    CHURCH.  285 

tians  in  any  denomination,  will  cease  to  beat  with 
emotions  of  lofty  thanksgiving  to  the  God  of  grace, 
that  he  raised  up  such  gifted  and  holy  men  to  meet 
the  corruptions  of  the  Papacy,  and  to  breast  the 
wickedness  of  the  world."* 

Beautiful  indeed  are  these  testimonies  to  the  purity 
and  devotion  of  our  venerable  Church !  We  point 
then  to  such  acknowledgments  as  an  appropriate 
answer  to  those  who,  unacquainted  with  her  past 
history,  and  ignorant  of  the  spirit  which  now  reigns 
within  her  courts,  would  charge  upon  the  members 
of  the  Church,  a  want  of  religious  principle. 

We  have  thus  endeavored  to  notice  some  of  the 
prominent  arguments  urged  against  the  Church.  Do 
they  not  come  from  those  who — in  the  words  of  the 
Apostle —  "  understand  neither  what  they  say,  nor 
whereof  they  affirm !"  There  are  other  objections, 
also,  which  might  be  brought  forward ;  but  the  time 
would  fail,  were  we  to  attempt  to  reply  to  every 
thing  which  ignorance  or  captiousness  may  allege. 
All  indeed  that  we  ask,  is  investigation.  We  know 
that  the  Church  which  our  Lord  founded,  and  which 
now  has  descended  to  us  with  the  veneration  of 
eighteen  centuries,  cannot  be  found  wanting  in  any 
one  single  point  which  concerns  man's  spiritual  wel- 
fare. We  will  trust  her,  therefore,  in  preference  to 
any  of  the  shifting,  changing  experiments  which 
court  our  notice.  From  the  many  ages  that  have 
gone,  there  comes  down  to  us  the  recorded  experi- 
ence of  those  who  have  slept  in  the  faith — the  holy 
dead  whose  words  and  actions  still  speak  to  the  world, 
urging  it  on  to  godliness — and  whose  spirits  are  now 

*  Ibid.  p.   170. 


2  86  POPULAR    OBJECTIONS 

rejoicing  in  the  Paradise  of  God.  We  question  them, 
therefore,  as  to  the  way  in  which  they  reached  their 
lofty  stand  in  hohness.  We  ask  them  to  point  out  to 
us  the  path  in  which  we  should  tread.  And  their 
answer  is  uttered  in  the  words  of  the  prophet — 
"  Stand  ye  in  the  ways,  and  see,  and  ask  for  the  old 
paths  where  is  the  good  way,  and  walk  therein,  and 
ye  shall  find  rest  for  your  souls."  We  learn,  that 
they  were  nurtured  in  the  bosom  of  our  ancient 
Church,  who  regards  all,  the  high  and  the  low,  as 
alike  her  children,* — that  in  her  solemn  rites  and 
services  they  found  all  the  spiritual  aliment  necessary 
for  their  souls,  and  thus  were  prepared  for  the  Church 
in  glory. 

Let  us  then  profit  by  their  example.  As  we  travel 
on  our  way,  each  year  convulses  the  religious  world 
with  a  new  excitement,  and  gives  birth  to  some  plan 
for  leading  the  lost  to  the  truth,  which,  in  the  judg- 
ment of  erring  man,  is  better  than  that  practised  by 
Apostles  and  Saints  in  primitive  days — more  effectual 

"  *  Our  Mother,  the  Church,  hath  never  a  child, 

To  honor  before  the  rest, 
And  she  singeth  the  same  for  mighty  kings, 

And  the  veriest  babe  on  her  breast  ; 
And  the  Bishop  goes  down  to  his  narrow  bed 

As  the  ploughman's  child  is  laid, 
And  alike  she  blesseth  the  dark-brow 'd  serf. 

And  the  chief  in  his  robe  arrayed. 
She  sprinkles  the  drops  of  the  bright  new-birth, 

The  same  on  the  low  and  high. 
And  christens  their  bodies  with  dust  to  dust. 

When  earth  with  its  earth  must  lie  ; 
Oh,  the  poor  man^ s  friend  is  the  Church  of  Christ, 

From  his  birth  to  his  funeral  day  ; 
She  makes  him  the  Lord's,  in  her  surpliced  arms, 

And  singeth  his  burial  lay." 

Rev.  A.  C.  Coxe. 


AGAINST    THE    CHURCH.  287 

than  that  by  which  the  early  heralds  of  the  Cross 
broke  the  power  of  heathenism,  and  Christianized  the 
world.  Those  deep  and  searching  sorrows  by  which 
the  contrite  heart  turns  to  its  Lord,  and  thus,  as  in  a 
furnace  of  fire,  purifies  the  whole  man,  are  all  now 
derided,  as  something  formal  and  antiquated.  In 
their  place,  new  machinery  is  invented,  which,  by 
one  sudden,  violent  effort,  sweeps  the  abandoned 
sinner  from  the  depth  of  his  degradation,  and  elevates 
him  immediately  to  the  very  heights  of  Mount  Zion. 
Peace,  rather  than  holiness,  is  made  the  end  and 
object  of  their  search. 

But  oh,  be  not  deceived,  or  believe  that  anything 
can  be  substituted  in  place  of  that  discipline — that 
holy  training,  which  gradually,  yet  surely,  prepares 
for  heaven,  and  which  it  is  the  object  of  the  Church 
to  effect  by  her  constantly  recurring  round  of  services. 
Voices  on  every  side  are  summoning  you  to  leave 
the  fold  of  the  faithful.  The  restless  and  unsettled 
are  ever  pointing  out  new  paths,  and  exclaiming, 
"  Lo  here,"  and  "  Lo  there."  They  cry  with  regard 
to  our  Lord — **  Behold,  he  is  in  the  desert,"  and 
thus  would  induce  you  to  be  wanderers  with  them 
in  the  pathless  wilderness.  We  say  therefore  unto 
you,  in  that  Master's  words — "  Believe  it  not.  For 
there  shall  arise  false  Christs,  and  false  prophets,  and 
shall  show  great  signs  and  wonders ;  insomuch  that 
if  it  were  possible,  they  shall  deceive  the  very  elect." 
Not  in  the  whirlwind  and  the  storm  is  it,  that  faith 
takes  root,  and  godliness  grows  up  in  strength.  It 
is  beneath  the  gentle  dews  of  divine  grace,  which  fall 
silently  yet  steadily,  that  the  vineyard  is  quickened 


288  POPULAR  OBJECTIONS  AGAINST  THE   CHURCH. 

into  fertility.  The  whisperings  of  "  the  still  small 
voice,"  lead  us  on  to  peace  and  happiness.  And 
this  is  pledged  to  the  Apostolic,  Catholic  Church, 
and  in  her  courts  is  never  sought  in  vain  by  her 
children. 


IX. 

THE  CHURCH  IN  ALL  AGES  THE  KEEPER  OF 
THE   TRUTH. 

She  sits — Truth's  Witness  in  an  evil  world, 
And  sore  environ'd  by  unnumber'd  foes, 
With  wiles  and  weapons  stern  against  her  hurl'd  ; 
The  Child  of  Life,  death's  shades  around  her  close; 
The  Crown  of  joy,  amid  o'erwhelming  woes  : 
Her  right  hand  holds  the  keys  of  death  and  life. 
And  calm  she  sits  in  undisturb'd  repose, 
But  all  around  with  hostile  arms  are  rife, 
And  foes  of  earth  and  hell  are  arming  for  the  strife. 

The  Baptistery, 

Melancholy  indeed  was  the  view  presented  to  the 
great  Apostle  of  the  Gentiles,  when  standing  upon 
the  Mount  of  Observation,  he  first  looked  forth  over 
the  world  which  was  to  be  the  scene  of  his  labors. 
The  greater  portion  of  mankind  were  crushed  down 
by  the  iron  power  of  Rome — a  tyranny  the  most 
oppressive  and  degrading,  which  seemed  to  be  grad- 
ually treading  out  every  spark  of  generous  feeling, 
and  fitting  the  human  race  only  to  be  slaves.  Neither 
was  there  anything  to  correct  the  cruelty  and  licen- 
tiousness which  were  so  fearfully  on  the  increase. 
For  ages  men  had  made  trial  of  their  moral  strength, 
but  seemed  now  to  have  resigned  themselves  to 
despair.  Every  prevailing  system  had  lost  what 
purifying  influence  it  might  formerly  have  possessed. 
The  philosophy  of  Greece — perverted  from  all  the 
nobler  ends  at  which  once  it  aimed — was  only  invest- 
ing vice  with  new  grace,  and  causing  the  arrow  to 
19 


290  THE    CHURCH  IN  ALL  AGES 

sink  deeper  because  its  point  was  polished.  The  old 
Paganism  of  Rome  had  begun  to  lose  all  moral 
hold  on  the  mind,  and  now  was  only  sustained  as  the 
religion  of  the  Empire,  and  the  instrument  of  power 
to  its  priesthood.  Even  its  ministers  in  secret  scoffed 
at  it  as  an  imposture.  "  Diligently  practising  " — says 
Gibbon — "  the  ceremonies  of  their  fathers  ;  devoutly 
frequenting  the  temples  of  the  gods  ;  and  sometimes 
condescending  to  act  a  part  on  the  theatre  of  super- 
stition, they  concealed  the  sentiments  of  an  atheist 
under  the  sacerdotal  robes."*  In  Egypt,  forgetting 
the  lessons  of  wisdom  which  in  an  older  day  were 
taught  in  the  sacred  groves  of  Memphis  and  Heliopo- 
lis,  her  people  now  bowed  to  deities  of  their  own 
creation,  and  worshipped  the  herb  they  eat,  or  the 
reptile  upon  which  they  trod. 

Neither  did  the  East  furnish  to  the  Apostle  any 
more  cheering  view.  There  was  the  fruitful  home 
and  the  cradle  of  every  debasing  form  of  idolatry.  The 
ancient  inhabitants  of  Palestine  had  bequeathed  to 
their  descendants  the  adoration  of  Astarte,  the  Queen 
of  Heaven,  or  of  that  spirit  which,  under  the  name  of 
Baal,  was  supposed  to  guide  the  chariot  of  the  sun ; 
while  still  more  distant  nations,  with  their  innumera- 
ble gods,  had  collected  in  their  worship  every  thing 
which  was  degrading  and  licentious.  Even  God's 
own  people,  the  Jews,  had  shared  in  this  debasement. 
Their  religion  had  degenerated  into  formality.  The 
purity  of  their  earlier  days  had  departed,  and  so 
marked  was  their  wickedness,  that  their  own  historian, 
Josephus,    bears   his   indignant    testimony   to   their 

*  Decline  and  Fall  of  the  Roman  Empire,  ch.  ii. 


THE    KEEPER    OF    THE    TRUTH.  29 1 

depravity.*  Such  was  the  prospect  which  presented 
itself  to  St.  Paul,  as  he  looked  over  the  moral  land- 
scape. Truly,  it  was  a  "world  lying  in  wickedness." 
"The  people  were  sitting  in  gross  darkness." 

Where  then  was  the  power  which  could  meet  all 
this  array  of  idolatry  and  vice,  and  mould  it  into 
purity  ?  On  what  did  the  Apostle  rely,  that  he  was 
enabled  to  go  forth  so  boldly  to  confront  it  ?  His 
hopes  rested  on  that  Church — then  in  the  feebleness 
of  her  early  day — which  his  Lord  had  founded. 
He  looked  to  her,  as  a  perpetual  witness  against  sin. 
He  expected  her,  with  her  holy  institutions,  to  enter 
the  dark  and  troubled  waves,  and  spread  over  them 
a  glory  not  of  this  world.  His  trust  was,  in  "the 
Church  of  the  Living  God,  the  pillar  and  ground  of 
the  truth." 

Has  the  Church  then  realized  these  high  expecta- 
tions ?  Has  she  fulfilled  the  lofty  destiny  which  St. 
Paul  marked  out  for  her  ?  Has  she  in  the  ages  which 
have  gone,  been  the  Ark  of  truth  for  a  fallen  and 
apostate  world  ?  The  history  of  the  past  answers, 
that  she  has.  From  every  page  of  the  records  of  our 
race,  there  comes  a  testimony,  that  the  Church  alone 
has  been  the  preserver  of  all  that  is  most  valuable  to 
man  in  time  and  through  eternity.  It  is  on  this  sub- 
ject then  that  I  would  address  you  this  evening — THE 
CHURCH,  IN  ALL  AGES,  THE  KEEPER  AND  GUARDIAN 
OF  THE  TRUTH.  From  an  historical  view  of  her 
origin  and  progress,  it  will  be  evident,  that  in  each 
crisis,  intellectual  or  moral,  in  the  existence  of  our 

*  "  Nor  did  any  age  ever  breed  a  generation  more  fruitful  in 
wickedness  than  this  was,  from  the  beginning  of  the  world."  Antiq. 
lib.  V.  chap.  10. 


292  THE    CHURCH  IN  ALL    AGES 

race,  the  Church  has  stood  forth  to  rescue  man's 
best  interest  from  ruin.  And  she  was  enabled  to 
accompHsh  this  great  work  by  her  strict  organization 
and  government,  and  the  union  produced  by  the 
ApostoHc  ministry,  binding  together  the  different 
branches  by  a  common  tie. 

We  might  indeed  say  at  once,  that  since  God 
adopted  this  plan  for  preserving  in  the  earth  a  knowl- 
edge of  our  faith,  it  must  be  the  best  method  that 
could  be  devised.  The  very  fact  that  it  was  the 
choice  of  Infinite  Wisdom,  proves  this  point  con- 
clusively. But  it  is  evident,  even  to  the  eye  of 
human  reason,  that  this  end  could  probably  have 
been  effected  in  no  other  way.  Had  the  word  of 
God,  and  the  holy  principles  of  His  Gospel,  been  left 
to  be  treasured  up  only  in  the  breast  of  each  private 
individual,  or  to  be  swept  about  on  the  wild  waves 
of  popular  feeling,  they  would  long  since  have  disap- 
peared from  the  earth.  The  same  result  would  have 
followed,  had  the  spiritual  destinies  of  the  world  been 
committed  to  the  care  of  the  discordant  sects  which 
are  now  around  us.  These,  deprived  of  the  high 
claims  of  the  Apostolic  Church,  and  standing  inde- 
pendently of  each  other,  unite  both  the  nature  and 
the  weakness  of  mere  voluntary  associations.  It  is 
the  existence  of  the  Church,  which  keeps  the  truth 
always  before  the  world,  which  gives  to  religion  "  a 
local  habitation  and  a  name,"  and  endows  it  with 
permanency. 

We  shall  easily  perceive  this  by  looking  back  to 
the  past  history  of  our  faith.  It  was  the  regular 
organization  of  the  Church — her  systematic  discipline, 
and  her  unity,  which  enabled  her,  in  the  first  three 


THE    KEEPER    OF    THE    TRUTH.  293 

centuries,  not  only  to  survive  the  violence  of  enemies, 
but  even  to  be  always  the  aggressor,  and  to  advance 
with  a  steady  step  from  conquering  to  conquer.  It  is 
to  this,  under  God,  that  we  must  ascribe  the  triumphs 
she  gained.  Wherever  the  Apostles  went,  they  left 
not  the  converts  who  had  been  gained,  to  confine 
their  feelings  to  their  own  breasts — to  stand  isolated 
and  alone — to  use  their  principles  only  as  articles  of 
individual  belief — or,  in  their  blindness,  just  starting 
from  the  sleep  of  heathenism,  to  endeavor  to  settle 
a  system  of  ecclesiastical  polity  for  themselves.  On 
the  contrary,  they  formed  their  followers  into  one 
united  body,  the  different  parts  of  which  were  bound 
together  by  the  closest  alliance.  Thus,  they  grew 
up  to  maturity  and  strength,  in  secret  and  in  silence, 
while  their  enemies  were  scarcely  aware  of  their 
increase.  In  the  midst  of  the  mighty  empire  of 
Rome,  a  new  kingdom  quietly  arose.*  "  It  came 
not  witli  observation."  No  sound  of  a  trumpet 
heralded  its  approach — no  clang  of  arms  marked  its 
progress — but,  like  the  building  of  the  first  temple, 
while  the  noise  of  the  workmen's  instruments  was  not 
heard,  the  mighty  fabric  was  fast  rising  up  into 
splendor  and  beauty.  *- 

*  "While  the  great  body  [the  Roman  Empire]  was  invaded  by 
open  violence,  or  undermined  by  slow  decay,  a  pure  and  humble  re- 
ligion gently  insinuated  itself  into  the  minds  of  men,  grew  up  in 
silence  and  obscurity,  derived  new  vigor  from  opposition,  and  finally 
erected  the  triumphant  banner  of  the  Cross  on  the  ruins  of  the  Capitol." 
Gibbon'' s  Decline  and  Fall,  vol.  ii.  p.  265. 

t  "  There  was  neither  hammer  nor  axe,  nor  any  tool  of  iron  heard 
in  the  house,  while  it  was  building."     i  Kings  vi.  7. 

"  In  awful  state, 


The  temple  reared  its  everlasting  gate. 


294  THE    CHURCH  IN   ALL    AGES 

The  faith  stretched  its  ramifications  through  every 
class  of  society,  and  enlisted  everywhere  its  prose- 
lytes. The  degraded  bondsman  in  his  chains  became 
"  a  freeman  in  Christ  Jesus,"  and  the  inmate  of 
palaces  began  to  aspire  after  diadems  whose  gloiy 
was  eternal,  and  which  were  to  be  received  only 
when  "the  mortal  had  put  ort  immortality."  Thus, 
the  heathen  saw  their  temples  suddenly  deserted^ — 
their  fellow- worshippers  changed  into  foes — and  them- 
selves encompassed  by  ten  thousand  associations,  all 
uniting  in  the  same  discipline,  and  all  proclaiming 
irreconcilable  hostility  to  the  time-honored  faith  of 
their  fathers.  "  It  was  not  a  foreigner  who  invaded 
them,  not  barbarians  from  the  north,  not  a  rising  of 
slaves,  nor  an  armament  of  pirates,  but-  the  enemy 
rose  up  from  among  themselves.  The  first-born  in 
every  house,  *  from,  the  first-born  of  Pharaoh  on  the 
throne  to  the  first-born  of  the  captive  in  the  dungeon,' 
unaccountably  found  himself  enlisted  in  the  ranks  of 
this  new  power,  and  estranged  from  his  natural  friends. 
Their  brother,  the  son  of  their  mother,  the  wife  of 
their  bosom,  the  friend  that  was  as  their  own  soul, 
these  were  the  sworn  soldiers  of  the  '  mighty  army,' 
that  '  covered  the  face  of  the  whole  earth.'  And  when 
they  began  to  interrogate  this  enemy  of  Roman  great- 
ness, they  found  no  vague  profession  among  them- 
selves, no  varying  account  of  themselves,  no  irregular 

No  workman's  steel,  no  ponderous  axes  rung  ! 
Like  some  tall  palm  the  noiseless  fabric  sprung." 

Heber^s  Palestine. 
*  In  the  celebrated  letter  of  C.  Pliny,  to  the  Emperor  Trajan,  in 
describing  the  progress  of  Christianity,  he  mentions,  that  "  the 
temples  were  almost  desolate,"  "the  sacred  solemnities  had  been 
long  intermitted,"  and  '•  the  sacrificial  victims  could  scarce  find  a 
purchaser."     See  whole  Letter  in  Wilson''s  Evidences,  vol.  i.  p.  214. 


THE    KEEPER    OF    THE    TRUTH.  295 

and  uncertain  plan  of  action  or  conduct.  They 
wert  all  members  of  strictly  and  similarly  organized 
societies.  Every  one  in  his  own  district  was  the 
subject  of  a  new  state,  of  which  there  was  one  visible 
head,  and  officers  under  him.  These  small  kingdoms 
were  indefinitely  multiplied,  each  of  them  the  fellow 
of  the  other.  Wherever  the  Roman  Emperor  travel- 
led, there  he  found  these  seeming  rivals  of  his  power, 
the  Bishops  of  the  Church."* 

Thus  it  was  that  the  faith  went  on.  It  measured 
strength  with  the  proud  philosophy  of  Greece,  and 
planted  its  standard  in  the  midst  of  Athenian  luxury 
and  superstition.  Along  the  shores  of  the  Mediterra- 
nean, every  city  reared  its  temples,  on  whose  lofty 
pinnacles  the  Golden  Cross  glittered  in  the  sunbeams ; 
while  there  rose  at  break  of  day  the  melody  of  count- 
less thousands  singing  "  hymns  to  Christ  as  God,"t 
in  those  lovely  valleys  from  whence  now  only 

"The  Moslem's  prayers  profane. 
Mom  and  eve  come  soundint; 

Spain  received  the  Gospel  gladly — Africa  sent  her 
hundreds  of  Christian  Bishops  to  the  Councils  of  the 
Church  X — while  St.  Paul  himself  preached   the  faith 

*  Newman's  Sermons,  vol.  ii.  p.  264. 

f  "  They  were  accustomed,  on  a  stated  day,  to  meet  before  day- 
light, and  to  repeat  among  themselves  a  hymn  to  Christ  as  to  a  God." 
Pliny'' s  Letter  to  Trajan. 

X  The  argument  is  often  advanced  by  those  opposed  to  us,  that 
from  the  great  number  of  Bishops  present  at  some  of  the  ancient 
councils,  it  is  evident  they  must  have  been  only  Presbyters.  The  error 
here  arises  from  not  remembering  two  facts — ist,  that  these  regions 
of  the  world,  although  now  thinly  inhabited,  then  contained  a  dense 
population. — 2d,  that  Dioceses  in  that  day  were  much  smaller  in 
geographical  extent,  than  now.  We  will  take  Africa  as  an  illustra- 
tion  of  this.  The  northern,  or  Christian  portion  of  this  continent, 
comprehending  the  six  Roman  Provinces,  is  computed  by  Procopius 


296  THE    CHURCH    IN    ALL    AGES 

in  that  little  barbarous  isle,  which  then  was  looked 
upon  as  "cut  off  from  all  the  world,"*  but  which  has 

to  be  ninety  days'  journey  in  length,  that  is,  2360  miles.  The 
breadth  varied  from  200  to  500  miles.  It  has  been  estimated  that 
the  population  was  at  least  eighty  millions,  the  majority  of  whom 
were  nominal  Christians. 

Now  we  know  that  in  St.  Augustine's  day  there  were,  in  this 
compass,  at  least  466  dioceses.  {Bing.  Orig.  Eccles,  lib.  ix.  ch.  2,  sect. 
5.)  WTien  the  Vandals  exiled  the  whole  body  of  the  African  Bishops, 
their  number  amounted  to  nearly  500.  {Fleury,  Hist.  Eccles.  lib. 
XXX.  s.  7.)  In  addition  to  these,  the  provinces  of  Egypt,  Lybia,  and 
Pentapolis,  contained  100  dioceses. 

These  dioceses  averaged  from  60  to  80  towns  and  villages,  each  of 
which  contained  at  least  one  congregation,  while  in  some  of  them  we 
know  there  were  several.  There  were  above  500  clergy  in  the  Church 
of  Carthage.  {Bitig.  lib.  ix.  c.  2,  s.  5.)  St.  Augustine's  Diocese  of 
Hippo,  was  above  40  miles  long.  {Ibid.)  There  was  a  Canon  of 
the  African  Councils,  which  says,  "No  Bishop  shall  leave  his  princi- 
pal Cathedral,  and  reside  in  any  other  church  of  his  diocese."  (Ibid.) 
Thus  implying,  that  there  were  more  churches  than  one  in  each 
diocese.  And  when  there  were  in  the  same  diocese  rival  Bishops  set 
up  by  the  Catholics  and  Donatists,  they  were  in  different  parts  of 
the  diocese. 

In  this  way  we  might  go  through  the  East,  and  one  who  had  not 
investigated  the  subject,  would  be  surprised  at  the  strength  of  the 
Church,  as  shown  by  the  number  of  her  dioceses.  In  the  Patriarchate 
of  Constantinople  were  about  600  dioceses,  varying  in  size.  Of  these, 
400  were  in  Asia,  and  200  in  Europe.  In  the  diocese  of  Csesarea, 
which  was  about  one  hundred  miles  square,  St.  Basil,  when  Bishop  in 
A.  D.  375,  had  under  him  50  Chor-episcopi,  or  assistant  Bishops, 
each  having  under  his  authority  many  Presbyters  and  Deacons. 
(Greg.  Naz.  Carm.  De  Vita,  Basil.  Bas.  Ep.  i8l,  412.)  In  Italy 
were  300  dioceses  ;  in  Spain  70,  in  France  117.  In  Persia  alone 
there  were  50  ;  and  during  a  persecution,  A.  D.  330,  we  learn  that  23 
Bishops  suffered  martyrdom  at  the  same  time.  In  one  of  these 
dioceses,  250  of  the  clergy  v.ere  put  to  death  with  their  Bishop.  See 
Bingham,  lib.  ix. 

So  easy  is  it,  by  an  appeal  to  the  records  of  that  day,  to  refute  the 
objection  derived  from  the  great  number  of  Bishops.  In  those  lands 
Christianity  has  receded,  and  it  is  estimated  that  we  have  lost  150 
millions  of  worshippers  by  the  returning  wave  of  Paganism,  or  the 
strange  imposture  of  the  prophet  of  Mecca. 

*  "Britannos  orbe  divisos." 


THE    KEEPER    OF    THE    TRUTH.  297 

since  sent  the  Church  to  us,  and  now  is  planting  it 
throughout  the  earth.  Thus  it  was  that,  in  the  words 
of  an  Apostle — "  the  Gospel  was  preached  to  every 
creature  which  is  under  Heaven." 

But  the  triumphs  of  the  Church  were  not  confined 
to  the  provinces.  Our  faith  entered  the  Imperial 
City,  and  St.  Paul  was  "ready  to  preach  the  Gospel 
to  them  that  were  at  Rome  also."  It  did  indeed  re- 
quire fortitude  and  devotion,  to  attack  Paganism  in 
this  its  strongest  hold.  The  obstacles  which  im- 
peded its  progress  in  other  lands,  were  tenfold 
increased  in  the  Capital.  The  chariot-wheel  of 
Roman  greatness  had  gone  on,  levelling  one  kingdom 
after  another,  until  all  the  earth  had  been  given  to  its 
sceptre.  Idolatry  was  there  in  its  most  splendid 
form,  and  its  strongest  array.  Embodied  in  the 
national  customs,  it  seemed  exactly  suited  to  the 
tastes  and  feelings  of  the  popular  mind.  Its  Pan- 
theon of  gods  appealed  to  the  prejudices  of  every 
nation.  The  Court  was  there,  wielding  a  despotism 
which  scorned  all  opposition,  and  which  scrupled  not 
to  shed  rivers  of  blood  in  furthering  its  designs. 
The  luxury,  and  vice,  and  licentiousness,  which  pre- 
vailed in  the  rest  of  the  world,  seemed  but  a  faint 
reflection  of  that  developing  itself  in  every  form  in 
the  Capital. 

Here  then  was  a  task,  to  plant  the  pure  faith  of  our 
Lord  in  the  midst  of  all  this  corruption.  But  it  was 
accomplished.  The  sacrifice  was  indeed  a  great  one, 
for  Rome  through  many  years  was  purple  with  the 
blood  of  the  children  of  God ;  and  the  sands  of  the 
amphitheatre  were  dyed  with  the  gore  of  the  martyrs. 
But  yet,  the  end  was  attained,  and  in  a  space  of  time 


298  THE    CHURCH  H\f  ALL    AGES 

shorter  than  the  wildest  hopes  of  the  Christian  could 
have  imagined.  It  was  but  thirty  years  after  the 
crucifixion,  that  Nero,  to  remove  from  himself  the 
suspicion  of  having  set  fire  to  the  city,  charged  it  on 
the  Christians,  and  proceeded  to  inflict  upon  them 
the  most  cruel  torments.  The  historian  Tacitus,  when 
giving  an  account  of  this  persecution,  shows  us  how 
strong  at  that  time  must  have  been  the  Church  at 
Rome.  "  The  founder  of  that  name  " — he  says — 
"  was  Christ,  who  suffered  death  in  the  reign  of 
Tiberius,  under  his  procurator  Pontius  Pilate.  This 
pernicious  superstition,  thus  checked  for  a  while, 
broke  out  again ;  and  spread,  not  only  over  Judea, 
where  the  evil  originated,  but  through  Rome  also, 
whither  every  thing  bad  finds  its  way,  and  is  prac- 
tised. Some  who  confessed  their  sect,  were  first 
seized  ;  and  afterwards,  by  their  information,  a  vast 
multitude  were  apprehended."^  We  see,  then,  from 
this  statement,  how  great  must  have  been  the  num- 
ber of  disciples  in  the  city. 

But  persecution  did  not  stop  the  good  cause. 
The  faith  increased,  even  within  the  precincts  of  the 
court  It  forced  itself  into  high  places.  It  entered 
the  palace  of  the  Caesars;  and  three  centuries  more 
beheld  a  Roman  Emperor  adopting,  as  his  proudest 
badge,  the  Cross  of  the  once  despised  Nazarene,  and 
proclaiming  Christianity  to  be  the  religion  of  the 
Empire.  Then  came  one  decree  after  another,  smit- 
ing heathenism,  and  closing  its  temples,  until  it  grad- 
ually withered  away.  That  splendid  mythology  of 
Greece,  from  which  the  immortal  poets  of  old  time 
drew  their  inspiration,  faded  utterly  from  the  earth. 
*  Annals,  lib.  xv.  §  44. 


THE    KEEPER    OF    THE    TRUTH.  299 

The  long  array  of  divinities,  whose  names  once  were 
held  in  reverence,  vanished  even  from  the  knowledge 
of  the  people ;  until  to  later  generations,  they  have 

"  Gone  glimmering  through  the  dreams  of  things  that  were — 
A  school-boy's  tale." 

It  was  a  ruin,  which  Gibbon  pronounces  "  perhaps 
the  only  example  of  the  total  extirpation  of  any 
ancient  and  popular  superstition."^' 

Thus  died  the  antagonist  of  the  Gospel,  an  enemy 
which,  while  it  gathered  around  it  all  that  was  splen- 
did and  alluring,  was  also  the  natural  enemy  of  man  ; 
for  in  its  whole  creed  it  could  point  to  no  traces  of 
purity  and  hoHness.  Its  fall,  therefore,  was  the  free- 
dom of  the  world. 

Such,  then,  was  the  early  triumph  of  the  Church. 
And  now,  looking  back  upon  this  history,  what  do 
we  perceive  to  have  been  the  secret  of  her  strength  ? 
We  answer,  under  Providence,  it  was  her  union — the 
presentation  of  herself  visibly  before  the  world — her 
strict,  compact,  and  energetic  government. 

And  if  we  come  down  a  few  centuries  later,  to  the 
time  when  the  fierce  barbarians  from  the  North 
trampled  the  Roman  Empire  beneath  their  feet,  we 
shall  find,  that  then  the  perfect  organization  of  the 
Church  was  the  instrument  of  Heaven  for  the  preser- 
vation of  religion.  Had  it  not  been  for  the  influence 
of  her  standing  ministry,  all  traces  of  our  faith  would 
at  once  have  been  obliterated  from  the  West  Look 
at  the  materials  of  which  the  population  was  then 
composed.  Among  the  conquered  people,  the  higher 
classes  had  ceased  to  be  either  numerous  or  powerful ; 
while  the  lower,  recently  converted  from  polytheism, 

*  Decline  and  Fall,  chap,  xxviii. 


300  THE    CHURCH  IN  ALL  AGES 

were  not  always  the  most  sincere  in  their  change,  nor 
had  their  faith  —  which  was  no  longer  purified  by 
persecution — yet  gained  the  requisite  strength.  The 
clergy  alone  occupied  a  commanding  position,  which 
rendered  them  the  able  and  efficient  defenders  of  the 
oppressed.  They  extorted  respect  even  from  their 
Gothic  invaders.  In  the  first  confusion  of  conquest, 
they  might  indeed  share  in  the  indiscriminate  evils 
of  warfare,  yet  the  rudest  soldier  brought  with  him 
a  superstitious  reverence  for  the  priesthood,  particu- 
larly when  he  found  them  honored,  and  the  cere- 
monies of  their  worship  imposing."*  He  soon 
learned  to  invest  the  ministers  of  this  faith  with  a 
sanctity,  which  enabled  them  to  wind  their  chains 
about  the  hearts  of  their  conquerors,  and  to  win 
them  to  that  faith  itself  The  illiterate  prince  found 
himself  confronted  fearlessly  by  the  Christian  Bishop; 
and  the  respect  which  he  felt  was  soon  increased  by 
the  discovery,  that  the  clergy  were  the  exclusive 
possessors  of  that  learning  which  commands  the 
reverence  even  of  barbarians.  The  invaders  had 
been  already  converted  to  the  faith  before  they  left 
their  northern  homes,  and  now  the  ministers  of  the 
Church  stood  between  them  and  the  conquered,  as 
the  only  connecting  link  —  the  only  intermediate 
power — which  gave  some  community  of  interest  to 
the  master  and  the  slave.  They  found  themselves 
worshippers  of  the  same  God,  gathered  into  the  same 
Church,  and  united  under  the  same  spiritual  super- 
vision. Thus  the  Church,  with  her  high  authority, 
prevented  the  complete  disorganization  of  all  the 
existing  relations  of  society.     She  gradually  mingled 

*  Waddington's  Church  History,  p.  203. 


THE    KEEPER     OF    TEE     TRUTH.  301 

up  the  invaders  with  the  invaded  into  one  people, 
and  before  the  next  wave  of  conquest  came  from  the 
North,  the  community  was  in  some  measure  pre- 
pared to  breast  the  shock. 

In  this  way,  by  regulating  the  social  system,  and 
standing  forth  a  perpetual  witness  for  the  truth,  the 
Church  prevented  all  religion  being  absorbed  and 
lost,  in  the  conflict  and  confusion  of  the  times. ''^  But 
had  Christianity  then  existed  as  a  mere  individual 
belief,  or  had  its  form  of  government  been  less  com- 
plete and  vigorous,  it  would  have  possessed  neither 
the  energy  nor  discipline  necessary  to  maintain  its 
hold  in  the  midst  of  the  deluge  which  rolled  over  it 
Or,,Jiad  its  preservation  been  then  committed  to  the 
keeping  of  warring  sects,  which  were  ever  shifting 
and  changing,  both  it  and  they  would  have  been 
swept  from  the  earth  like  chaff  before  the  wind. 

And  thus  it  was  through  all  the  ages  which  fol- 
lowed, when  a  twilight  gloom  had  gathered  over  the 
earth,  even  down  to  the  dawn  of  the  Reformation. 
Although  the  Church  was  existing  only  in  a  corrupt- 
ed form,  yet  still  she  was  in  some  measure  discharg- 
ing her  duty  to  the  world,  by  keeping  alive  the 
remembrance  of  religion  in  the  minds  of  men.  The 
spiritual  despotism  of  the  Romish  Church  had  indeed 
stretched  an  iron  sceptre  over  the  earth  ;  yet  in  the 
good  providence  of  God  it  seems  to  have  been  per- 
mitted, because  more  efficacious  than  any  gentler 
form  of  faith,  to  keep  the  social  system  in  order 
during  an  age  of  savage  turbulence  and  unceasing 
tyranny.  The  Church  was  then  the  only  "  City  of 
refuge  "  for  the  helpless  and  oppressed.     The  power 

*  Milman's  Hist,  of  Christianity,  vol.  ii.  p.  163. 


302  THE    CHURCH  IN  ALL  AGES 

of  superstition  was  the  only  one  which  in  that  war- 
like age  formed  any  efficient  barrier  between  the 
nobles  and  their  down-trodden  vassals.  The  very 
claim  of  the  Bishop  of  Rome  to  be  the  vicegerent  of 
God  on  earth,  while  it  invested  him  with  a  fearful 
power,  perhaps  enabled  him  also  to  save  our  race 
from  the  horrors  of  perpetual  barbarism.  Customary 
as  it  has  been  to  speak  of  the  Church  in  these  cen- 
turies only  in  the  language  of  denunciation,  he  who 
does  so  knows  but  little  of  the  spirit  of  those  times. 

In  truth,  the  world  has  never  witnessed  a  spectacle 
more  sublime  than  that  furnished  by  the  Church  in 
her  progress  through  the  Middle  Ages.  It  was  a 
mental  supremacy,  which  cannot  but  command  our 
admiration,  even  when  it  devised  and  wielded  the 
weapons  of  superstition.  It  was  the  triumph  of 
intellect  and  learning,  over  ignorance  and  brutal 
force.  The  higher  classes  of  Europe,  at  that  time, 
were  a  fierce  and  lawless  nobility,  yielding  to  no 
authority  but  that  dictated  by  superior  strength,  and 
regarding  all  beneath  them  as  being  only  the  helots 
of  the  soil,  doomed  forever  .to  exist  but  as  "  the 
hewers  of  wood  and  drawers  of  water  "  to  their  lords. 
The  elements  of  society  were  always  at  war,  and 
often  threatening  to  rush  into  a  ruinous  conflict.  But 
above  these  wild  waves  of  anarchy  and  turbulence 
there  arose  a  mighty  form,  its  foot  indeed  resting  on 
the  earth,  but  its  head  reaching  to  the  clouds,  clothed 
with  the  attributes  of  both  worldly  and  spiritual 
power,  and  holding  in  its  hand  the  enchanter's  rod, 
which  alone  could  awe  into  silence  the  threatening 
storm  or  afford  a  timely  succor  from  external  violence. 
The  mightiest  of  mankind  trembled  before  it,  while  it 


THE    KEEPER    OF    THE    TRUTH.  303 

"bound  their  kings  with  chains,  and  their  nobles 
with  fetters  of  iron."  The  Church,  therefore,  in  that 
day,  was  the  sanctuary  of  the  earth.  She  was  the 
ark  in  which,  while  the  flood  of  error  was  sweeping 
around,  the  truth  was  preserved  in  being  for  better 
times.  Corrupt  then  as  the  Romish  Church  un- 
doubtedly was,  and  often  "  holding  the  truth  in 
unrighteousness,"  her  movements  were  still  overruled 
by  a  wise  Providence  to  the  futherance  of  good,  and 
her  colossal  strength  was  enlisted  to  keep  alive  in  the 
earth  the  true  Church,  that  "the  gates- of  hell  should 
not  prevail  against  it." 

There  were,  indeed,  at  that  time,  innumerable  ways 
by  which,  through  her  instrumentality,  religion  was 
daily  brought  before  the  people,  until  the  degraded 
peasant,  and  tlie  rude  and  warlike  baron,  were  alike 
obliged  to  yield  to  her  claims.  In  the  first  place,  her 
rites  and  services  were  gorgeous,  and  well  adapted 
to  an  illiterate  age,  when  the  heart  must  be  reached 
and  the  mind  enlightened,  through  the  medium  of 
the  senses. 

Again  —  the  Church  was  the  dispenser  of  the 
charities  of  the  age.  Thus,  that  work  was  effectually 
accomplished,  which  is  now  attempted  with  such 
inadequate  results,  by  a  multitude  of  voluntary 
associations — often  ill-directed  in  their  zeal  —  con- 
flicting in  their  efforts — and  bound  together  by  no 
sympathy  of  religious  principles.  The  pious  made 
the  Church  the  almoner  of  their  bounty,  and  thus, 
among  otlier  good  effects,  the  tie  was  strengthened 
which  bound  the  people  to  their  spiritual  pastors. 
They  came  to  them  for  relief  of  their  worldly  neces- 
sities, as  well  as  of  their  religious  wants,   and  thus 


304  THE    CHURCH  IN  ALL    AGES 

that  "most  excellent  gift  of  charity  "—one  of  the 
brightest  virtues  of  Christianity — was  inculcated  upon 
the  multitude,  not  only  by  the  preaching,  but  also 
by  the  daily  example  of  those  who  ministered  at  the 
altar.  Beautiful,  indeed,  is  the  picture  which  has 
come  down  to  us  of  the  crowds  which  morning  and 
evening  assembled  around  the  doors  of  the  religious 
houses,  to  have  their  wretchedness  relieved,^  and  sad 
was  the  day  for  England's  poor,  when  these  establish- 
ments— instead  of  being  remodelled  in  accordance 
with  the  rules  of  that  purer  faith  which  had  then 
dawned  upon  the  land — were  entirely  suppressed  by 

*  The  Rev.  J.  J.  Blunt — an  author  who  surely  will  not  be  accused 
of  any  attachment  to  Romanism — writes  thus — "As  we  know  not, 
says  the  proverb,  what  the  well  is  worth  till  it  is  dry,  so  was  it  found 
after  the  dissolution,  that  with  all  their  faults,  the  monasteries  had 
been  the  refuge  for  the  destitute,  who  were  now  driven  to  frightful 
extremities  throughout  the  country,  the  effect  of  the  suppression  being 
with  respect  to  them  the  same  as  would  now  follow  from  the  sudden 
abolition  of  the  poor  laws;  that  they  had  been  the  almshouses,  where 
the  aged  dependents  of  more  opulent  families,  the  decrepit  servant, 
the  decayed  artificer,  retired  as  to  a  home  neither  uncomfortable  nor 
humiliating  ;  that  they  had  been  the  country  infirmaries  and  dispen- 
saries, a  knowledge  of  medicine  and  of  the  virtues  of  herbs  being  a 
department  of  monkish  learning,  (as  passages  in  the  old  dramatic 
writers  sometimes  indicate,)  and  a  hospital,  and  perhaps  a  laboratory, 
being  component  parts  of  a  monkish  establishment  ;  that  they  had 
been  foundling  asylums,  relieving  the  state  of  many  orphan  and  out- 
cast children,  and  ministering  to  their  necessities, — God's  ravens  in 
the  wilderness,  (neither  so  black  as  they  had  been  represented,)  bread 
and  flesh  in  the  morning,  and  bread  and  flesh  in  the  evening  ;  that 
they  had  been  inns  for  the  wayfaring  man,  who  heard  from  afar  the 
sound  of  the  vesper  bell,  at  once  inviting  him  to  repose  and  devotion, 
and  who  might  sing  his  matins  with  the  morning  star,  and  go  on  his 
way  rejoicing  ;  that  they  filled  up  the  gap  in  which  the  public  libraries 
have  since  stood,  and  if  their  inmates  were  not  very  desirous  to  eat 
of  the  tree  of  knowledge  themselves,  they  had  at  least  the  merit  of 
cherishing  and  preserving  it  alive  for  others."  Hist,  of  Reformation 
in  England,  p.  142. 


THE    KEEPER    OF    THE    TRUTH.  305 

the  rude  hand  of  violence,  and  their  pensioners 
scattered  abroad,  to  subsist  by  the  cold  charity  of 
their  countrymen,  or  to  be  driven  by  want  into 
licentiousness  and  crime.  Well  may  a  living  poet 
ask — 

"  When  the  old  must  pass 


The  threshold,  whither  shall  they  turn  to  find 

The  hospitality — the  alms,  (alas  ! 

Alms  may  be  needed,)  which  that  house  bestowed?"* 

Even  to  this  day  we  have  witnesses  to  the  noble 
spirit  of  self-denial  which  prompted  the  men  of  those 
generations  to  sacrifice  all  private  interests  to  the 
advancement  of  their  faith.  The  magnificent  edifices 
scattered  through  every  land  in  Europe,  which  were 
dedicated  to  the  service  of  our  Lord,  and  which  suc- 
ceeding ages  have  attempted  in  vain  to  rival,  testify 
how  abundant  was  the  liberality,  and  how  deep  the 
religious  feeling  of  those,  who  were  then  the  members 
of  the  Church.  We  may  call  it  superstition — and 
such   it  sometimes  was — yet  we   believe  that  often 

*  Wordsworth's  Eccles.  Sonnets,  No.  xix.  "On  the  whole,  King 
Henry  VIII.  at  different  times,  suppressed  645  abbeys  and  monasteries. 
Ninety  Colleges  were  demolished  in  several  counties.  Two  thousand 
three  hundred  and  seventy-four  Chantries  and  Free  Chapels  ;  and 
no  Hospitals.  The  whole  revenue  of  these  establishments  amounted 
to  ^161,100."     HujTte,  vol.  iv.  p.  182. 

The  effect  of  this  change  upon  education  alone  is  thus  told  in  a 
single  sentence  by  Latimer,  in  the  middle  of  Edward  VI.'s  reign—"  I 
think  there  be  at  this  day,  ten  thousand  students  less  than  there  were 
within  these  twenty  years."  Latimer'' s  Sermons,  vol.  i.  p.  246.  M 
the  time  of  their  destruction,  Latimer  had  pleaded  with  Cromwell, 
Henry's  minister,  that  some  might  be  reserved  as  places  of  study  and 
prayer.  "  Alas,  my  good  Lord" — said  he — "  shall  we  not  see  two 
or  three  in  every  shire  changed  to  such  a  remedy  !"  He  pleaded,  how- 
ever, in  vain,  for  Henry  and  his  courtiers,  grasping  at  the  spoils,  were 
deaf  to  every  religious  argument.  See  Sir  H.  S/>e///ia/i's  Hist,  and 
Fate  of  Sacrilege,  or  the  last  part  of  Chtirlon's  Early  English  Church. 
20 


3o6  THE    CHURCH  IN    ALL    AGES 

these  works  were  prompted  by  a  loftier,  holier  feeling 
— that 

"  They  dreamt  not  of  a  perishable  home, 
Who  thus  could  build."* 

Again — the  penitential  discipline  of  the  Church 
was  continually  enforcing  the  moral  precepts  of  our 
religion.  The  superstitious  crowd,  who  could  be 
awed  by  nothing  else,  trembled  when  they  heard  the 
terrible  denunciations  of  the  Church ;  and  as  the 
penitent  stood  before  them  in  his  public  shame,  they 
were  impressed  with  a  salutary  awe,  as  they  witnessed 
his  deep  humiliation,  the  intensity  and  bitterness  of 
his  remorse.  No  elevation  of  rank  was  so  lofty  as  to 
shield  the  offender.  Kings  bowed  to  the  spiritual 
authority  of  the  Church,  and  were  forced  to  realize, 
that  when  they  entered  her  walls,  they  stood  in  the 
sight  of  the  King  of  kings,  on  a  level  with  the  mean- 
est of  their  subjects.  In  an  age  when  the  true  spirit 
of  religion  was  but  dimly  perceived,  this  system  must 
have  possessed  the  strongest  power,  when  exerted  to 
advance  man's  moral  improvement.  And  in  these 
days  of  laxity  and  carelessness,  would  not  a  revival  of 
something  of  this  ancient  and  stern  discipline  of  the 
Church  tend  to  call  back  also  in  some  measure  a 
portion  of  her  former  spirit  ? 

The  Church,  too,  sought  unceasingly  to  correct  the 
vices  of  the  whole  system — to  improve  the  spirit  of 
society  —  and  to  interpose  as  peacemaker  for  the 
prevention  of  outrage  and  warfare.  If  indeed  we 
closely  examine  the  history  of  the  past,  and  compare 
the  condition  of  society  in  successive  centuries,  we 
shall  be  surprised  to  find  how  many  of  the  glaring 
*  Wordsworth's  Ecclesiastical  Sonnets,  No.  xxxv. 


THE   KEEPER    OF   THE    TRUTH.  307 

abuses  of  the  Middle  Ages  have  gradually  disap- 
peared before  the  increasing  light  of  the  Church, 
until  they  have  been  entirely  extirpated.  Without 
her  influence,  we  should  now  be  sunk  in  degradation 
and  barbarism  ;  for  even  of  that  literature  which  has 
come  down  to  us  from  the  days  of  classic  antiquity, 
the  Church  was  the  guardian  in  a  time  when  the 
world  at  large  knew  not  the  worth  of  these  models 
of  the  past.  It  was  in  the  libraries  of  the  monas- 
teries that  the  intellectual  treasures  of  former  ages 
were  preserved,  when  these  were  the  only  places  of 
safety;  because  the  rude  noble,  whose  trade  was 
war,  and  who  felt  no  remorse  in  rifling  cities  and 
palaces,  dared  not  lay  the  finger  of  violence  on  those 
consecrated  buildings.  He  dreaded  too  much  the 
threatenings  of  the  Church. 

Such  was  the  Church  of  the  Middle  Ages.  A  dark 
pall  was  indeed  drawn  over  Western  Christendom, 
and  the  human  mind  in  the  mass  of  men  slumbered 
in  a  rest  which  was  unbroken.  But  fearful  as  the 
picture  was,  there  were  still  some  redeeming  traits. 
Within  the  courts  of  the  Church  were  ever  those, 
whose  learning  enlightened  the  age  in  which  they 
lived.  "  There  was  a  continual  succession  of  individ- 
ual intellects — the  golden  chain  was  never  wholly 
broken,  though  the  connecting  links  were  often  of 
baser  metal.  A  dark  cloud,  like  another  sky,  cov- 
ered the  entire  cope  of  Heaven ;  but  in  this  place  it 
thinned  away,  and  white  stains  of  light  showed  a 
half-eclipsed  star  behind  it — in  that  place  it  was  rent 
asunder,  and  a  star  passed  across  the  opening  in  all 
its  brightness,  and  then  vanished."*     In  many  a  re- 

*  Coleridge's  Literary  Remains,  vol.  ii.  p.  26. 


3o8  THE   CHURCH  IN  ALL    AGES 

tired  spot,  too,  humble  piety  was  training  up  for 
Heaven,  and  the  Church  in  secret  was  nurturing 
within  her  fold  those  whose  names  live  not  in  history, 
but  whose  record  is  now  on  high.  Mingled  with  the 
superstition  which  then  prevailed,  there  was  indeed  a 
heartiness  in  their  devotion — a  reality  for  every  day 
life  in  their  religion — which  might  well  shame  the 
lukewarm  faith  of  modern  times.  Therefore  it  is, 
that  even  now,  in  these  days  of  greater  light,  the 
thoughtful  mind  cannot  forbear  often  turning  back 
with  regret,  and  amid  the  worldliness  which  is  around 
us,  feeling  that  far  better  was  the  simple,  unlearned 
piety  of  former  centuries.  Yet  these  imaginings  are 
not  to  be  indulged.  The  past  cannot  return.  "Neither 
the  churches  nor  the  empires  of  the  Middle  Ages  are 
to  be  rebuilt,  however  lovely  many  things  about 
them  were,  nor  the  forms  of  that  warlike  Christianity 
to  be  wished  back  again,  in  place  of  the  better  forms 
of  a  more  primitive  pattern.  They  were  forms 
which  primitive  truths  put  on,  and  in  which  they 
then  saved  the  world :  forms  which  were  real  for 
awhile.  But  the  present  state  of  things  must  surely 
teach  the  ardent  and  the  hopeful  disciples  of  old 
times,  that  it  is  the  primitive  truths  for  which  they 
have  to  strive,  and  not  to  do  battle  for  the  chivalrous, 
middle-age  accessories  of  them,  however  gorgeous  or 
picturesque."* 

Review,  however,  the  picture  we  have  presented. 
See  the  lawlessness  of  those  centuries  through  which 
the  Church  passed,  and  then  tell  me,  which  of  the 
religious  societies  that  have  grown  up  around  her 
during  the  last  three  hundred  years,  would  have  been 

•  Faber's  Churchman's  Politics,  p.  6. 


THE    KEEPER     OF    TEE    TRUTH.  309 

able  to  perform  the  work  that  she  did — assert  the 
same  rule  over  the  human  mind,  wild  and  turbulent 
as  it  then  was — and  thus  save  the  faith  alive  ? 

And  look  around  you  now — even  in  these  times, 
which  boast  so  much  of  their  spiritual  and  intellectual 
light — and  think  what  we  should  be  without  a 
Church.  The  external  world  is  continually  present- 
ing its  fascinations — acting  on  the  imagination — and 
tempting  us,  in  view  of  "  things  seen,"  to  dismiss  all 
remembrance  of  "the  things  which  are  unseen." 
Now,  to  counteract  this,  what  more  efficacious  than 
a  visible,  unchanging  Church,  to  be  a  witness  for 
Christ — to  speak  to  us  continually  by  her  solemn 
services — to  preach  to  a  gainsaying  world  the  great 
truths  of  Redemption — and,  with  a  ceaseless  voice,  to 
summon  it  to  heed  the  whispers  of  conscience,  and  to 
think  of  Eternity.  Thus  the  Church  alike  rebukes 
the  ungodly,  and  inspires  the  fainting  believer  with 
new  courage.  She  is  a  witness  of  the  invisible  world 
— setting  forth,  even  in  this  life,  that  separation  which 
is  one  day  to  take  place  between  the  just  and  the  un- 
just. Wlio  then  can  estimate  the  wonderful  influence 
she  exerts !  From  the  present  as  well  as  from  the 
past,  we  can  gather  an  argument  in  behalf  of  that 
wisdom,  which  set  forth  "the  Church  of  the  Living 
God,"  to  be  forever  "  the  pillar  and  ground  of  the 
Truth." 

This,  then,  is  the  historical  view  of  the  Church. 
We  have  spoken  only  of  that  general  witness  which 
she  bears  for  the  truth,  but  we  might  strengthen  the 
argument,  by  taking  up,  one  by  one,  the  doctrines 
which  our  faith  sets  forth,  and  showing  how,  through 
the  influence  of  the  Church,  each  one  is  preserved 


310  THE    CHURCH  IN  ALL  AGES 

alive  in  the  memory  of  man.  But  the  time  would 
fail  us,  should  we  attempt  to  enter  on  this  subject. 
We  trust,  however,  that  you  have  already  seen  how 
entirely  this  plan,  which  has  been  devised  to  defend 
the  faith  from  injury,  is  in  accordance  with  Infinite 
Wisdom.  It  only  remains,  then,  that  we  should 
commend  this  Church  to  your  affections.  It  is  now 
the  same  Church  which  we  have  followed  in  her  pro- 
gress through  eighteen  centuries — the  same  which 
our  Lord  founded,  when  He  trod  the  hills  of  Galilee, 
and  taught  in  the  villages  of  Judea — the  same  which 
His  Apostles  invited  their  countrymen  to  enter,  when 
they  first  preached  the  news  of  redeeming  love  in  the 
streets  of  Jerusalem.  Checkered  as  her  course  has 
been  with  fearful  vicissitudes,  she  has  not  only  sur- 
vived, but  grown  and  expanded.  The  sunshine  and 
the  calm  have  often  been  withdrawn,  and  the  Church 
been  obliged  to  make  her  way  through  the  cloud  and 
the  storm.  She  has  gone  through  periods  dark  and 
turbulent,  as  well  as  those  enlightened  and  tranquil. 
Every  habit  and  form  of  social  life  has  in  turn  been 
tried,  and  at  one  time  she  has  had  to  contend  against 
the  corruptions  of  refinement,  and  at  another,  with 
the  grossness  of  barbarism.  Dangers  have  ever  en- 
circled her,  and  her  enemies  never  ceased  to  threaten 
her  existence.  "  The  Kings  of  the  earth  stood  up, 
and  the  rulers  were  gathered  together  against  her." 
In  her  early  day,  however  the  Roman  Emperors 
might  differ  in  temper  and  disposition,  they  always 
agreed  in  hostility  to  the  Church.  The  wise  Trajan, 
and  the  brutal  Nero — the  philosophic  Antoninus,  and 
the  madman  Domitian  —  were  alike  zealous  in  the 
cause  of  heathenism.     In  whatever  hand  the  scourge 


THE    KEEPER    OF    THE    TRUTH.  31 1 

might  be,  it  always  fell  upon  the  Christian.  The 
noble — the  pure — the  young  and  the  aged  —  were 
flung  together  into  the  same  dishonored  grave.  One 
requisition  after  another  was  made  upon  the  Church, 
to  send  forth  her  champions  for  martyrdom ;  and  the 
voice  of  the  wailing  was  ever  heard  in  her  courts,  as 
they  mourned  the  loss  of  leaders  in  "  the  Sacramental 
host  of  God's  elect,"  who  had  passed  into  Paradise 
from  the  agonies  of  the  stake,  or  whose  spirits  had 
gone  upward  from  the  fire.  False  friends,  too,  have 
acted  as  traitors  in  the  camp  of  the  Lord.  Heresies, 
which  deformed  the  feith,  and  schisms,  which  sought 
to  divide  it — have  caused  one  party  after  another  to 
separate  from  the  ancient  Church  ;'^'  and  never  yet 
has  the  world  been  able,  from  the  lives  of  her  mem- 
bers, to  form  a  just  estimate  of  the  excellence  of  her 
doctrines. 

But  yet,  notwithstanding  all,  the  Church  survived, 
while,  as  she  passed  down  the  stream  of  time,  she 
beheld  one  nation  after  another  fall,  and  the  most 
powerful  empires  suffer  extinction.  And  look  at  her 
now.  Is  her  vitality  diminished,  or  her  "  natural 
force  abated  ?"  Is  her  strength  impaired  by  the 
conflicts  through  which  she  has  passed  ?  Can  you 
point  to  any  evidence  of  the  decrepitude  of  age  ? 
No — she  is  still  in  the  vigor  of  her  youth.  She  is 
unchanged — or  rather,  she  presents  herself  now  to 
the  gathering  storm,  with  a  bolder  front  than  ever  in 
ages  that  are  passed. 

Are   you  then   a   member  of  this  Church,  which 

*  The  martyr  Cyprian  writes — "  We  have  not  departed  from  them, 
but  they  from  us  ;  and  since  schisms  and  heresies  are  born  afterwards, 
they  left  the  fountain-head  and  origin  of  truth,  when  they  constituted 
different  assemblages  for  themselves."     De  Utut.  256. 


312  THE    CHURCH  IN  ALL    AGES,    ETC. 

comes  to  you  sanctioned  by  such  weighty  claims  ? 
With  every  promise  fulfilled  to  the  letter — every 
precious  hope  realized  to  the  full — and  enriched  with 
the  prayers  of  generations  that  have  gone  —  she 
appeals  to  your  hearts.  Thousands,  as  you  have 
seen,  have  died,  rather  than  forfeit  an  interest  in  her 
blessings.  That  branch  to  which  it  is  our  privilege 
to  belong,  is  no  novelty  in  the  world,  but  looks  back 
through  a  long  line  of  confessors  and  martyrs  of  the 
Church  Catholic,  to  Christ  Himself  as  her  head.  She 
teaches  all  the  grand  and  cardinal  doctrines  of  our 
faith.     She  is  wanting  in  no  single  point. 

We  invite  you  then — if  you  have  not  already  done 
so — to  take  refuge  within  her  walls,  before  God  shall 
arise  to  shake  terribly  the  earth.  Come,  and  unite 
yourself  with  the  bright  array  of  those  who  have 
gone  before,  on  whom  is  resting  the  Spirit  of  glory 
and  of  grace.  They  are  bending  down  from  their 
thrones  on  high — "  a  great  cloud  of  witnesses  " — to 
see  whether  you  will  still  sustain  that  Holy  Church, 
to  advance  which  they  considered  life  itself  as  not  too 
precious  to  be  sacrificed.  They  have  bequeathed  to 
you  this  cause,  to  bear  it  onward  as  once  they  did. 
You  are  standing  in  their  places,  and  are  the  inheri- 
tors of  their  responsibilities.  You  are  "  baptized  for 
the  dead."  And  now,  the  host  of  the  elect  is  press- 
ing onward.  Some  have  already  passed  into  Canaan, 
over  the  river  of  death,  and  some  are  still  toiling  on 
in  the  wilderness.  Oh,  may  you,  when  the  dispersed 
of  God's  spiritual  Israel  are  gathered  into  one,  be 
found  again  united  as  members  of  "  the  general  as- 
sembly and  Church  of  the  first-born,  which  are 
written  in  Heaven." 


X. 

THE  TRUE,  CATHOLIC  CHURCHMN. 

All  may  save  self; — but  minds  that  heavenward  tower, 

Aim  at  a  wider  power, 

Gifts  on  the  world  to  shower. 
And  this  is  not  at  once  ; — by  fastings  gained. 

And  trials  well  sustained, 
By  pureness,  righteous  deeds,  and  toils  of  love, 
Abidance  in  the  Truth,  and  zeal  for  God  above. 

Lyra  ApostoUca. 

Having  endeavored  to  bring  before  you  the  distinc- 
tive principles  of  the  Church — those  by  which  we  are 
separated  from  the  different  denominations  around 
us — the  question  naturally  occurs,  What  is  the  prac- 
tical bearing  of  those  truths  ?  We  answer — they  are 
to  be  acted  out  in  the  life,  and  embodied  in  the  daily 
walk  and  conversation  of  those  who  profess  to  be 
members  of  our  Holy  Apostolic  Church.  I  know 
not,  therefore,  that  I  can  select  a  more  appropriate 
subject  with  which  to  close  these  Lectures,  than  a 
delineation  of  THE  TRUE,  CATHOLIC  CHURCHMAN. 
The  very  name  indeed  which  he  bears — if  he  walk 
worthy  of  it — proclaims  the  principles  by  which  he 
will  be  directed.  He  has  received  his  title  from  no 
human  teacher.  He  assumes  the  badge  of  no  mere 
sect.  He  shares  in  that  jealous  vigilance  which 
induced  St.  Paul  so  sternly  to  chide  the  Corinthians, 
because  one  party  said  "  we  are  of  Paul,"  and 
another,  "we  are  of  Apollos,"  and  another,  "we  are 
of  Cephas."  And  this  feeling  the  Primitive  believ- 
ers bequeathed  to  those  who  came  after  them  in  the 


314  THE    TRUE,    CATHOLIC    CHURCHMAN. 

early  Church.  "  We  take  not,"  says  St.  Chrysostom, 
"  our  denomination  from  men.  We  have  no  leaders, 
as  the  followers  of  Marcion,  or  Manichaeus  or  Arius."* 
"  The  Church,"  says  Epiphanius,  "  was  never  called 
so  much  as  by  the  name  of  any  Apostle.  We  never 
heard  of  Petrians,  or  Paulinus,  or  Bartholomaeans, 
or  Thaddseans  :  but  only  of  Christians,  from  Christ,  "f 
"  I  honor  Peter  " — says  another  Father — "  but  I  am 
not  called  a  Petrian ;  I  honor  Paul,  but  I  am  not 
called  a  Paulin  ;  I  cannot  bear  to  be  named  from  any 
man,  who  am  the  creature  of  God."|  And  Bingham 
tells  us  that  when  Sempronian,  the  Novatian  heretic, 
demanded  of  Pacian  the  reason  why  Christians  called 
themselves  Catholics,  he  answered,  that  it  was  to 
distinguish  them  from  Heretics.  "  Christian  " — he 
says — "  is  my  name,  and  Catholic  my  sur-name ;  the 
one  is  my  title,  the  other  my  character  or  mark  of 
distinction.  "§  Such  was  the  feeling  of  these  early 
saints.  Leaving  to  the  sects  which  started  up  on 
every  side,  to  name  themselves  after  their  leaders, 
they  still  kept  to  that  general  appellation,  which  was 
more  expressive  of  unity  and  relationship  to  their 
Lord.  The  Churchman  of  this  day  therefore  has 
inherited  these  views,  and  by  the  name  Catholic 
Churchman,  he  expresses  both  his  allegiance  to  his 
Divine  Master,  and  to  that  Apostolic  Church  He 
founded.  I| 

*  Horn.  33,  in  Acts. 

t  Bing.  Orig.  Eccles.  lib.  i.  ch.  i,  sect.  6.       %  Greg.  Naz.  Ora.  31. 

§  Orig.  Eccles.  lib.  i.  ch.  i,  sect.  7. 

II   "  I  wear  the  name  of  Christ,  my  God, 

So  name  me  not  from  man  I 

And  my  broad  country  Catholic, 

Hath  neither  tribe  nor  clan  : 


THE    TRUE,    CATHOLIC    CHURCHMAN.  313 

One  characteristic  of  the  true  Churchman  is — that 
he  receives  with  hmnillty  all  the  doctrines  of  the 
Church,  and  avows  his  belief  in  them.  This  must  at 
once  be  evident.  It  would  be  an  absurdity  for  a 
disciple  to  call  himself  by  the  name  of  a  teacher  to 
whose  instructions  he  did  not  fully  subscribe.  As  the 
Jew  prided  himself  on  being  the  follower  of  Moses, 
and  showed  his  reverence  for  the  ancient  dispensation 
by  observing  all  its  requirements,  even  the  most 
minute,  so  does  the  Churchman  proclaim  to  the 
world  the  fact,  that  he  is  a  disciple  of  Christ,  and  a 
member  of  His  Holy  Apostolic  Church.  He  is 
ready  to  acknowledge  his  belief  in  all  that  his  Master 
taught,  either  when,  Himself  on  earth,  He  acted  as 
the  earliest  herald  of  the  Gospel ;  or  when,  after  His 
ascension,  He  inspired  holy  men  to  enlarge  the 
circle  of  revelation,  and  then  committed  to  the  Church 
which  He  had  organized  the  lofty  duty  of  being  a 
Keeper  and  Witness  of  the  Truth. 

But  we  are  told  that  there  is  no  necessity  for  an 
appeal  to  the  Church,  to  learn  the  fundamental  doc- 
trines of  our  faith — that  "the  Bible  alone  is  the 
religion  of  Protestants " — and  we  need  no  other  inter- 
vention to  aid  us  in  forming  our  Creed,  or  in  settling 
our  belief.  Look  then  over  the  world,  and  see  how 
this  assertion  is  supported  by  actual  experience.  The 
first  sound  which  strikes  the  ear  is  the  din  of  contro- 
versy, as  the  most  solemn  truths  which  God  has  re- 
vealed are  openly  questioned  and  denied,  or  banded 

Its  rulers  are  an  endless  line, 

Through  all  the  world  they  went, 
Commissioned  from  the  Holy  Hill 

Of  Christ's  sublime  ascent."  Rev.  A.  C.  Coxe. 


3l6  THE    TRUE,    CATHOLIC    CHURCHMAN. 

about  among  warring  heretics  from  mouth  to  mouth, 
until  the  reverence  even  of  the  beUever  is  insensibly 
impaired.  The  first  sight  which  meets  the  eye,  is 
that  of  the  body  of  Christ  rent  asunder,  and  contend- 
ing parties  using  as  hostile  watchwords  those  solemn 
verities,  to  which  man  should  have  listened  only  with 
awe  and  reverence.  The  present  situation  of  the 
different  Protestant  sects  around  answers  but  too 
truly  the  description  which  Dante  has  given : — 

"  Christ's  host,  which  cost  so  dear  to  arm  afresh, 
Beneath  its  ensign  moves  with  tardy  step; 
Thin  are  its  ranks,  each  soldier  coldly  looks 
Upon  his  fellow,  doubtful  of  his  faith."* 

Amidst  then  this  changing,  shifting  sea  of  opinions, 
where  is  the  truth  ?  In  what  can  I  believe,  as  the 
certain  teaching  of  my  Lord  ?  The  Bible  is  of  course 
before  me,  and  I  may  study  it  for  myself,  but  the 
same  privilege  is  afforded  others  also,  and  yet  I  be- 
hold a  hundred  varying  sects — all  holding  different 
Creeds — and  all  professing  to  derive  them  from  that 
Volume.  Which  then  is  right  ?  Where  can  I  find  a 
guide  to  direct  me  in  the  right  path  ?  I  can  truly 
say,  like  the  Ethiopian  Eunuch — "  How  can  I  under- 
stand, except  some  man  should  guide  me  ?" 

Now,  these  difficulties  are  natural,  and  must  be 
felt  by  every  reflecting  mind.t  The  Church,  there- 
fore, has  provided  a  remedy.  She  does  not  say  to 
her  children,  "  Each  one    of  you    may    explain  the 

*  Paradiso,  xii. 

t  "  We  learn  to  prize  that  which  is  not  of  this  earth  ;  we  long  for 
revelation,  which  nowhere  burns  more  majestically  or  more  beauti- 
fully than  in  the  New  Testament.  I  feel  impelled  to  open  the  original 
text — to  translate  for  once,  with  upright  feeling,  the  sacred  original 
into  my  darling  German.  It  is  written  :  'In  the  beginning  was  the 
Word.'  Hre  I  am  already  at  a  stand ;  who  will  kelp  me  on  ?" 
Goethe's  Faust,  p.  44. 


THE    TRUE,    CATHOLIC    CHURCHMAN.  317 

Scripture  according  to  your  own  fancy " — ^but  she 
furnishes  them  with  an  interpretation.  Going  back 
to  Primitive  times — to  the  days  of  Apostles  and 
Martyrs — she  unrolls  their  writings,  and  inquires  how 
these  men,  who  stood  nearest  to  the  fountain  of  light 
— who  lived  when  the  tradition  of  all  our  Lord's 
words  and  deeds  had  not  yet  faded  from  the  earth — 
how  they  understood  His  precepts  ?  She  takes  the 
ground — and  surely  it  is  a  reasonable  one — that  doc- 
trines which  have  been  the  admitted  faith  of  the 
Church  from  the  first  age  down  through  eighteen 
hundred  years,  are  probably  correct,  and  therefore 
she  teaches  them  to  her  children  in  her  creeds  and 
formularies. 

Here  then  is  her  rule  of  faith — SCRIPTURE  AS 
IT  ALWAYS  HAS  BEEN  INTERPRETED  BY  THE 
Church.  The  Church  of  Rome  contends  that  there 
are  two  rules  of  faith,  of  equal  authority  ;  that  there 
is  an  unwritten  tradition,  alike  definite  and  alike  to 
be  respected  with  the  written  word  of  God.  Thus  it 
was  asserted  in  a  decree  of  the  Council  of  Trent — "  All 
saving  truth  is  not  contained  in  the  Holy  Scripture, 
but  partly  in  the  Scripture  and  partly  in  unwritten 
tradition,  which  whosoever  doth  not  receive  zvitJi  like 
piety  and  reverence  as  he  doth  the  Scriptures,  let  him 
be  accursed.'"^  The  clearly  stated  doctrine  of  our 
own  Church,  on  the  contrary,  is,  that  tradition  is  to  be 
used  only  to  interpret  Scripture.  "  The  Church  hath 
power  to  decree  rites  or  ceremonies,  and  authority 
in  controversies  of  faith  ;  and  yet  it  is  not  lawful  for 
the  Church  to  ordain  anything  that  is  contrary  to 
God's  word  written  :   neither  may  it  so  expound  one 

*  Sess.  iv.  Decret.  de  Cr.n.  Script. 


3 lb        THE    TRUE,    CATHOLIC    CHURCHMAN. 

place  of  Scripture  that  it  be  repugnant  to  another. 
Wherefore,  although  the  Chitrck  be  a  witness  and  a 
keeper  of  Holy  Writ,  yet  as  it  ought  not  to  decree 
anything  against  the  same,  so,  besides  the  same, 
ought  it  not  to  enforce  anything  to  be  believed  for 
necessity  of  salvation."* 

Again — the  Church  of  Rome  fetters  the  judgment, 
by  requiring  a  blind,  unconditional  submission  to 
those  who,  from  time  to  time,  occupy  the  place  of 
ecclesiastical  rulers.  They  constitute  the  Church,  and 
are  to  be  implicitly  obeyed.  Thus,  an  appeal  to 
Catholic  antiquity,  to  verify  her  doctrines,  is  practi- 
cally forbidden,  since  each  one  must  believe  what  the 
Church  does  now  hold.f  The  different  denomina- 
tions around  us,  going  to  the  other  extreme,  give  un- 
bounded license  to  the  fancy,  by  an  unrestricted 
exercise  of  private  interpretation.  Our  own  Church, 
avoiding  either  error,  "  inculcates  a  liberal,  discrimi- 
native, yet  undeviating  reverence  for  pious  antiquity : 
a  reverence,  alike  sanctioned  by  reason,  inspired  by 
feeling,  and  recommended  by  authority,":]:  She 
adopts  the  rule  laid  down  by  Vincentius  of  Lerins, 
who  wrote  in  the  year  434.  A  brief  view  of  his 
system  may,  therefore,  be  useful  in  illustrating  the 
principles  of  the  Church  on  this  point. 

He  sets  out  with  inquiring  how  he  must  decide  be- 
tween truth  and  error  ?     His  language  is — "  I  have 

*  Art.  XX. 

t  Thus,  Dr.  Hawarden,  in  speaking  of  the  Arians,  uses  this  lan- 
guage— ' '  If  they  be  allowed  the  plea  of  all  reformers,  I  mean,  of  ap- 
pealing from,  and  against  the  present  Catholic  Church,  to  the  times 
past,  the  controversy  can  never  be  ended,  until  the  dead  speak." 
The  True  Church  of  Christ,  vol.  ii.  pref.  p.  9. 

X  Appendix  to  Bishop  Jebb's  Sermons,  p.  366. 


THE    TRUE,    CATHOLIC    CHURCHMAN.  319 

made  frequent  and  earnest  inquiries  of  a  great  num- 
ber of  holy  and  learned  men,  hoiv  I  might  discrimi- 
nate, that  is,  what  certain  and  universal  rule  there 
was  for  discriminating  between  Catholic  truth  and 
heretical  pravity;  and  I  have  ever  received  some- 
thing like  the  following  answer,  that  whether  I  myself 
or  any  other  private  person,  wished  to  detect  the 
corruptions,  and  avoid  the  snares  of  heretics  who 
were  springing  up,  and  to  remain  sound  and  whole 
in  the  sound  faith,  there  were  two  ways,  by  God's 
blessing,  of  preserving  himself — first,  by  the  authority 
of  Scripture;  next  by  the  teaching  of  the  Church 
Catholic." 

But,  he  continues — "  Here  some  one,  perhaps,  will 
demand,  since  the  Canon  of  Scripture  is  complete, 
and  in  itself  more  than  sufficient  for  all  things,  why 
need  I  subjoin  to  it  the  authority  of  ecclesiastical 
opinion  ?"  To  this  objection,  his  answer  is — "  That 
the  very  depth  of  Holy  Scripture  prevents  its  being 
taken  by  all  men  in  one  and  the  same  sense,  one 
man  interpreting  it  in  one  way,  one  in  another;  so 
that  it  seems  almost  possible  to  drav/  from  it  as  many 
opinions  as  there  are  readers.  Novatian,  Photinus, 
Sabellius,  Donatus,  Arius,  Eunomius,  and  Mace- 
donius,  Apollinaris,  and  Priscillian,  Jovianus,  Pelagius, 
and  Celestius,  lastly  Nestorius,  each  of  those  heretics 
has  his  own  distinct  interpretation  of  it.  This  is  why 
it  is  so  necessary,  viz.,  in  order  to  avoid  the  serious 
labyrinths  of  such  various  errors,  to  direct  the  line  of 
interpretation,  both  as  to  Prophets  and  Apostles, 
according  to  the  sense  of  the  Church  and  Catholic 
world." 

Having  thus  most  conclusively  proved  the  necessity 


320  THE    TRUE,    CATHOLIC    CHURCHMAN. 

for  some  rule  of  interpretation,  he  proceeds  to  state  that 
one  which  can  ahvays  give  us  a  sure  direction — "  We 
must  be  pecuHarly  careful  to  hold  that  which  hath  been 
beheved,  IN  ALL  PLACES,  AT  ALL  TIMES,  BY  ALL  THE 

FAITHFUL  :  Quod  ubique,  quod  semper,  quod  ab 
OMNIBUS  CREDITUM  EST.  This  is  true  and  genuine 
Catholicism,  as  the  very  word  means,  comprehending 
all  truths,  every  where,  and  truly ;  and  this  will  be 
ours,  if  we  follow  in  our  inquiries  Universality,  An- 
tiquity, and  Consent.  We  shall  follow  Universality, 
if  we  confess  that  to  be  the  one  true  faith,  which  is 
held  by  the  Church  all  over  the  world  ;  Antiquity,  if 
we  in  no  respect  secede  from  the  tenets  which  were 
in  use  among  our  Holy  Elders  and  Fathers ;  and 
Consent,  if,  in  consulting  antiquity  itself,  we  attach 
ourselves  to  such  decisions  and  opinions  as  were  held 
by  all,  or  at  least  by  almost  all,  the  ancient  Eishops 
and  Doctors." 

"  What,  then,  will  the  Catholic  Christian  do,  in  a 
case  where  any  branch  of  the  Church  has  cut  itself 
off  from  the  communion  of  the  universal  faith  ?  What 
can  he  do  but  prefer  the  general  body,  which  is 
sound,  to  the  diseased  and  infected  member  of  it  ? 
What  if  some  novel  contagion  attaint  with  its  plague- 
spots,  not  only  a  portion,  but  even  the  whole  Church  ? 
Then  he  will  be  careful  to  keep  close  to  antiquity, 
which  is  secure  from  the  possibility  of  being  corrupted 
by  new  errors.  What  if,  even  in  antiquity  itself, 
there  be  two  or  three  men,  nay  one  community,  or 
even  province,  discovered  in  error  ?  Then  he  will 
be  careful  to  prefer  to  the  rashness  or  ignorance  of 
the  few,  (if  so  be,)  the  ancient  decrees,  [i.  e.  in  Coun- 
cil,) or  the  Universal  Church.     What  if  a  case  arises 


THE    TRUE,    CATHOLIC    CHURCHMAN.  32 1 

when  no  such  acts  of  the  Church  are  found  ?  Then 
he  will  do  his  best  to  compare  and  search  out  the 
opinions  of  the  ancients ;  that  is,  of  those  who,  in 
various  times  and  places,  remaining  in  the  faith  and 
communion  of  the  one  Catholic  Church,  are  the  most 
trustworthy  authorities  ;  and  whatever,  not  one  or 
two,  but  all  alike,  with  one  consent,  held,  wrote,  and 
taught,  and  that  openly  and  perseveringly,  that  he 
will  understand  is  to  be  believed  without  any  hesi- 
tation." Having  thus  laid  down  his  rules,  Vincentius 
adds — "  By  these  principles,  faithfully,  soberly,  and 
diligently  observed,  we  shall,  with  no  great  difficulty, 
detect  every  noxious  error,  of  all  heretics,  who  may 
rise  against  the  Church."* 

Such  was  the  rule  in  the  fifth  century,  and  it  is  one 
by  which  the  Church  is  even  now  guided.  "  I  greatly 
mistake  " — says  the  Rev.  G.  S.  Faber — "  if,  in  any 
one  instance,  the  wise  Reformers  of  the  Church  of 
England  can  be  shown  to  have  exercised  an  insulated 
private  judgment.  In  fact,  they  po.ssessed  far  too 
much  theological  learning,  and  far  too  much  sound 
intellect,  to  fall  into  this  palpable  error.  Omitting, 
then,  the  mere  dogmatism  of  the  Latin  Church  on  the 
one  hand,  and  the  wanton  exercise  of  illegitimate 
private  judgment  on  the  other  hand,  the  practice  of 
those  venerable  and  profound  theologians  who  pre- 
sided over  the  reformation  of  the  Anglican  Church, 
will  teach  us,  that  the  most  rational  mode  of  deter- 
mining differences  is  a  recurrence  to  first  principles, 
or  an  appeal  to  that  Primitive  Church  which  was 
nearest  to  the  times  of  the  Apostles."! 

In  the  "  Necessary  Doctrine,"  &c.,  which  in    1543 
Commonit.  adv.  Usereticos.     \  DifiSculties  of  Romanism,  p.  33. 
21 


322  THE    TRUE,    CATHOLIC    CHURCHMAN. 

was  adopted  by  the  whole  Church  of  England,  we 
are  told — "  All  those  things  which  were  taught  by 
the  Apostles,  and  have  been  by  a  whole  universal 
consent  of  the  Church  of  Christ  ever  sith  that  time 
taught  continually,  and  taken  always  for  true,  ought 
to  be  received,  accepted,  and  kept,  as  a  perfect 
doctrine  apostolic."*  With  regard  to  the  Articles  of 
the  Creed,  Christians  are  commanded  "  to  interpret 
all  the  same  things,  according  to  the  self-same 
sentence  and  interpretation  which  the  words  of 
Scripture  do  signify,  and  the  holy  approved  doctors 
of  the  Church  do  agreeably  entreat  and  defend." 
They  are  directed  also  to  reject  all  doctrines,  "  which 
were  of  long  time  past  condemned  in  the  four  holy 
councils,  "t 

This  was  the  view  of  Cranmer.  In  his  Epistle  to 
Queen  Mary  on  the  subject  of  the  Eucharist,  he  says 
— "  Herein  I  said  I  would  be  judged  by  the  old 
Church,  and  which  doctrine  could  be  proved  the 
elder,  that  I  would  stand  unto.":};  Bishop  Ridley, 
too,  acknowledges  the  weight  of  Catholic  tradition  as 
a  guide  in  interpretation.  §  Bishop  Jewell  writes — 
"  We  are  come  as  neere  as  we  possibly  could,  to  the 
Church  of  the  Apostles,  and  of  the  old  Catholike 
bishops  and  fathers  ;  and  have  directed,  according  to 
their  customs  and  ordinances,  not  only  our  doctrine 
but  also  the  sacraments,  and  the  forme  of  common 
praire."||  And  so  the  rule  remains  now  explicitly 
stated  in  our  articles.  In  the  XX.  Article  it  is  said — 
"  The   Church    hath   authority   in   controversies   of 

Formularies  of  Faith,  p.  221.         -j-  Formularies  of  Faith,  p.  227. 
X  Cranmer's  Works,  vol.  ii.  p.  113. 
§  Jebb's  Sermons,  Appendix,  p.  395.         ||  Apology,  p.  156. 


THE     TRUE,     CATHOLIC    CHURCHMAN.  323 

faith  ;"  and  afterwards  in  the  XXXIV.  it  is  added — 
"Whosoever,  through  Jus  private  judgment,  wiUingly 
and  purposely  doth  openly  break  the  traditions  and 
ceremonies  of  the  Church,  which  be  not  repugnant  to 
the  Word  of  God,  and  be  ordained  and  approved  by 
common  authority,  ought  to  be  rebuked  openly,"* 
It  is  by  this  safe  test,  then,  that  the  Church  decides 

*  That  this  is  the  rule  of  the  Church  of  England,  and  consequently 
of  our  own  branch  of  the  Church,  cannot  be  doubted  by  any  one  who 
will  read  the  records  of  the  past,  and  the  opinions  of  all  of  the  most 
eminent  English  divines.  See,  for  example,  the  Appendix  to  Bp. 
Jebb's  Sermons,  with  the  testimonies  there  collected  ;  and  the  Rev. 
E.  Churton's  Sermon,  "  The  Church  of  England,  a  witness  and  keeper 
of  the  Catholic  Tradition."  Did  our  limits  allow,  copious  extracts  in 
support  of  the  rule  of  Vincentius  might  be  given  from  the  following 
Divines  and  Authors  :  Jewell,  Bilson,  Hooker,  Overall,  Morton,  Field, 
White,  Hall,  Laud,  Montague,  Jackson,  Mede,  Usher,  Bramhall,  San- 
derson, Cosin,  Hammond,  Thorndike,  Taylor,  Heylin,  Commissioners 
(to  review  the  Prayer  Book,)  A.  D.  1662,  Pearson,  Barrow,  Bull, 
Stillingfleet,  Ken,  Beveridge,  Patrick,  Sharpe,  Potter,  Grabe,  Brett, 
Hicks,  Collier,  Leslie,  Waterland,  Bingham,  Jebb,  and  Van  Mildert. 

A  writer,  indeed,  who  takes  the  ground  that  the  Bible  alone  is  his 
rule  of  faith,  will  find  it  impossible  at  the  outset  to  prove  the  authority 
of  that  Book,  and  is,  therefore,  at  the  mercy  of  any  infidel  who 
attacks  him.  Bishop  Milner  thus  states  this  argument — "By  what 
means  have  you  learned  what  is  the  Canon  of  Scripture,  that  is  to 
say,  what  are  the  books  which  have  been  written  by  divine  inspira- 
tion ;  or,  indeed,  how  have  you  ascertained  that  any  books  at  all  have 
been  so  written  ?  You  cannot  discover  either  of  these  things  by  your 
rule,  because  the  Scripture,  as  your  great  authority  Hooker  shows 
(Ecctes.  Pol.  b.  lii.  sec.  8,)  and  Chillingworth  allows,  cannot  bear  tes- 
timony to  itself.  .  .  .  You  have  no  sufficient  authority  for  asserting 
that  the  sacred  volumes  are  the  genuine  compositions  of  the  holy 
personages  whose  names  they  bear,  except  the  tradition  and  living 
voice  of  the  Catholic  Church  ;  since  numerous  apocryphal  prophecies 
and  spurious  gospels  and  epistles,  under  the  same  or  equally  venera- 
ble names,  were  circulated  in  the  Church  during  its  early  ages.  .  .  . 
Indeed,  it  is  so  clear  that  the  Canon  of  Scripture  is  built  on  the  tradi- 
tion of  the  Church,  that  most  learned  Protestants,  wirfi  Luther  him- 
self, have  been  forced  to  acknowledge  it."  End  of  Controversy,  Let- 
ter ix. 


324  THE     TRUE,     CATHOLIC    CHURCHMAN. 

at  once  upon  those  countless  controversies,  which  are 
rending  in  bitterness  all  who  surround  us.  For 
example,  let  us  apply  this  rule.  We  hear  some 
denying  the  Divinity  of  our  Lord — degrading  him 
down  to  a  merely  inspired  prophet — and  when  we 
endeavor  to  establish  the  truth  of  his  Godhead  by  an 
appeal  to  Scripture,  they  reply  by  rejecting  our  in- 
terpretation of  its  words.*  What,  then,  is  our  safest 
course  ?  Why,  we  turn  to  the  testimony  of  the 
Church.  We  find  that  through  all  ages  the  great 
body  of  the  faithful  have  rendered  those  passages  as 
we  now  do,  and  bowed  in  reverence  to  our  Lord,  as 
a  Person  of  the  Triune  God.  We  will,  therefore,  be 
the  inheritors  of  their  faith,  and  with  them  acknow- 
ledge— "This  was  the  Son  of  God. "t 

•  Socinus  boasted  that  he  acknowledged  no  master  ;  Sed  Deum 
tantummodo  prseceptorem  habui,  sacrasque  literas.  He  accordingly 
denied  the  authority  of  the  Fathers,  Councils  and  Primitive  Church. 
{Palmer's  Treatise  on  Church,  v.  ii.  p.  59.)  It  is  said  in  the  life  of 
Biddle,  the  founder  of  the  English  Socinians,  that  "he  gave  the  Holy 
Scripture  a  diligent  reading  ;  and  made  use  of  ?io  other  rule  to  deter- 
mine controversies  about  religion,  than  the  Scriptures,  and  of  no  other 
authentic  interpreter,  if  a  scruple  arose  concerning  the  sense  of  Scrip- 
ture, than  reason."  (Ibid.  p.  64.)  It  would  be  easy  to  show,  that 
those  who  abandon  the  authority  of  the  fathers,  generally  end  by 
forsaking  the  truth.  The  infidel  Rationalists  of  Germany  who  have 
thus  disowned  all  ancient  authority,  boast  that  they  alter  their  belief 
"flj  often  as  any  new  views  require  it.'''  Rose's  State  of  Protest,  in 
Germany,  p.  24. 

f  "Doctrines  received  through  the  medium  of  only  two  or  three 
links  from  the  Apostles  themselves,  and  with  one  consent  declared  by 
all  the  various  Churches  then  in  existence  to  have  been  thus  received, 
cannot  be  false.  Thus,  for  an  instance,  Irenseus,  himself  the  pupil  of 
Polycarp  the  disciple  of  St.  John,  bears  witness  to  the  fact,  that  in  his 
time,  all  the  Churches  in  the  world  held  the  doctrine  of  our  Lord's 
divinity  ,•  each  professing  to  have  received  it,  through  the  medium  of 
one  or  two  or  three  links,  from  the  Apostles  ;  and  his  testimony  is 
corroborated  by   Hegesippus,  who,  about  the  middle  of  the  second 


THE    TRUE,    CATHOLIC    CHURCHMAN.  325 

Again — we  hear  others  denying  the  necessity  of 
infant  baptism,  and  thus,  in  the  words  of  our  Lord, 
"forbidding  little  children  to  come  to  Him."  We 
appeal  once  more  to  the  voice  of  the  Church.  We 
read  the  history  of  the  past.  We  discover  that  even 
from  the  Apostles'  days,  she  has  commanded  her 
members  thus  to  dedicate  their  children  to  Him  who 
had  redeemed  them,  and  we  are  therefore  contented 
to  walk  in  the  footsteps  of  those  who  have  gone 
before  us.  When,  too,  the  Romanist  comes  to  us 
with  his  exclusive  claims,  we  make  the  same  ap- 
peal to  antiquity.  We  show  that  our  doctrines  are 
older  than  his,  and  adopt  for  our  motto  that  declara- 
tion of  Bishop  Ridley — "  I  prefer  the  antiquity  of  the 
Primitive  Church  to  the  novelties  of  the  Church  of 
Rome."* 

Thus  it  is  that  we  decide  on  all  disputes.  Instead 
of  trusting  to  the  feebleness  of  individual  reason,  we 
obey  the  command  which  our  Lord  gave  when  He 
said — "  Hear  the  Church."  We  thus  free  ourselves 
from  doubt.  We  lean  upon  the  recorded  wisdom 
and  opinions  of  eighteen  centuries,  and  feel,  that  if  we 
are  wrong  on  these  points,  then  must  the  whole 
Church  have  been  so  through  all  her  generations.  Is 
not  this,  to  say  the  least,  the  safest  way  to  understand 

century,  travelled  from  Asia  to  Rome,  and  found  the  same  system  of 
doctrine  uniformly  established  in  every  Church,  Facts  of  this  de- 
scription form  the  basis  of  the  reasoning  adopted  by  Irenseus  and 
Tertullian  ;  and  the  conclusion  which  they  deduce  from  it  is,  the 
vioral  impossibility  of  the  Catholic  system  of  theology  being  erroneous .'" 
Faber^s  Difficulties  of  Romanism,  p.  27, 

*  See  an  admirable  sermon,  entitled,  "  The  Novelties  of  Romanism, 
or  Popery  refuted  by  Tradition,"  by  W.  F.  Hook,  D.D.,  of  Leeds, 
published  in  England  in  1840,  and  lately  reprinted  in  this  country  by 
D.  Dana,  20  John-street,  New-York. 


326        THE    TRUE,    CATHOLIC    CHURCHMAN. 

the  Word  of  God  ?  Let  us  not,  then,  bring  into  the 
Church  an  arrogant,  questioning,  carping  spirit,  but 
rather  that  humiHty  which  Bishop  Wilson  shows  in 
one  of  his  prayers — "  Grant,  O  Lord,  that  in  reading 
Thy  Holy  Word,  I  may  never  prefer  my  private 
sentiments  before  those  of  the  Church  in  the  purely 
ancient  times  of  Christianity."* 

Again — the  true  Churchman  is  devoted  in  his  atten- 
dance on  the  services  of  the  CJnirch.  To  this,  indeed, 
he  will  be  prompted  by  a  regard  for  his  own  spiritual 
advancement.  The  Church  knows  the  difficulty  of 
leading  your  thoughts  heavenward  in  this  worldly 
age,  and  therefore  calls  you  often  to  join  in  her 
solemn  rites.  Yet  not  too  often  is  this  summons 
given.  Oh,  we  may  rather  say,  would  that  it  were 
more  frequent,  and  men  could  be  induced,  as  in  the 
olden  time,  to  sanctify  every  day  by  devotion  ;  nor 
feel  that  they  should  go  forth  to  their  worldly  busi- 
ness, until  they  had  first  visited  the  house  of  God, 
there  to  gather  spiritual  strength  for  the  coming 
hours.f  But  the  times  have  become  intensely 
worldly,  and  men  now  care  for  nothing  but  heaping 
up  wealth,  or  gaining  honors,  or  pursuing  pleasures, 

*  Sacra  Privata,  p.  93. 

f  "In  foreign  climes,  mechanics  leave  their  tasks 

To  breathe  a  passing  prayer  in  the  Cathedrals  ; 
There  they  have  week-day  shrines,  and  no  one  asks, 
When  he  would  kneel  to  them,  and  count  his  bead-rolls, 
Why  are  they  shut  ? 
Seeing  them  enter,  sad  and  disconcerted. 

To  quit  those  cheering  fanes  with  looks  of  gladness — 
How  often  have  my  thoughts  to  ours  reverted  ! 
How  oft  have  I  exclaimed,  in  tones  of  sadness, 
WTiy  are  they  shut  ?" 
Stanzas  written  OUTSIDE  a  country  Church, 
By  Horace  Smith. 


THE    TRUE,    (J AT  HO  Lie    CHURCHMAN.  327 

with  as  desperate  an  energy  as  if  they  were  to  live 
here  forever.  The  Church,  therefore,  is  scarcely  able 
to  enforce  her  rules  of  regular,  systematic  devotion 
in  public  services,  and  is  often  obliged  to  trust,  that 
in  private  her  members  will  use  her  daily  Isssons  and 
solemn  prayers,  and  thus  there  shall  be  unity  of 
spirit  among  them  all. 

But  whenever  her  courts  are  open,  her  true  chil- 
dren will  feel,  that  nothing  shall  prevent  their  atten- 
dance there.  All  are  engaged  in  a  fearful  strug- 
gle against  the  world,  the  flesh,  and  the  devil,  and 
they  realize  it,  although  those  about  them  do  not. 
Happy  are  they,  therefore,  to  break  away  even  for  a 
single  hour  from  the  engrossing  cares  of  business, 
here  to  refresh  their  spirits,  where  God  dwelleth. 
They  would  thus  strengthen  their  immortal  hopes, 
that  the  bright  yet  transitory  things  around  them 
may  have  no  influence  over  their  hearts.  They 
would  have  solemn  voices  from  the  land  of  spirits 
sounding  in  their  ears,  that  thus  they  may  be  indif- 
ferent to  the  siren-song  of  enchantment  by  which 
this  earth  seeks  to  mislead  them. 

With  him  who  has  truly  imbibed  the  spirit  of  the 
Church,  the  want  of  time  is  never  urged  as  an  excuse. 
He  knows  that  a  willing  mind  can  make  time,  and 
that  if  he  will  attempt  it,  he  can  now  and  then  snatch 
a  single  hour  from  this  world  to  give  to  the  next. 
He  will  not  let  the  things  which  "  perish  with  the 
using  "  hold  him  constantly  captive,  but  remember- 
ing that  with  him  there  must  come  a  time  to  die,  he 
is  earnest  to  prepare  himself  for  that  solemn  hour. 
Feeling  that  the  next  life  is  but  a  continuation  of  this, 
only  on  a  higher  stage  of  action,  and  with  every  feel- 


328  THE    TRUE,    CATHOLIC    CHURCHMAh 

ing  more  fully  developed,  he  realizes,  that  if  he  can- 
not rejoice  in  the  worship  of  God's  earthly  sanctuary, 
he  is  not  prepared  to  join  in  the  services  of  the 
Heavenly  Temple — that  temple  above,  not  made  with 
hands. 

But  we  may  carry  this  farther,  he  will  not  only 
be  regular  in  his  attendance  on  the  services  of  the 
Church,  but  will  seek  nothing  beyond  her  ministra- 
tions. This  is  a  duty  which  he  owes  to  the  Church 
herself  It  is  not  a  matter  of  mere  feeling,  but 
should  become  one  of  principle.  If  the  Church  fur- 
nish sufficient  instruction,  all  that  is  necessary  for  his 
spiritual  welfare — and  none  surely  can  say  that  she 
does  not — then  he  should  confine  himself  to  her  ser- 
vices, and  not  be  unsettUng  his  mind  and  dissipating 
his  thoughts  by  wandering  elsewhere.  And  if  he  be- 
lieve the  truth  she  inculcates,  and  which  we  have 
been  endeavoring  in  previous  lectures  to  set  before 
you — the  necessity  of  the  Apostolic  succession  in 
the  ministry — then  the  appeal  is  made  to  him  on  still 
higher  grounds,  and  the  Church  has  a  claim  to  be 
his  authorized  instructor,  which  none  other  can 
advance.* 

*  Mr.  Will)erforce  is  often  quoted  for  liberality  in  his  Church  views. 
The  following  extracts,  however,  from  his  Diary,  will  show  that  on 
principle  he  abstained  from  attending  Dissenting  meetings.  We 
quote  from  Life  of  Wilberforce  by  his  Sons.     5  vols.  Lond.  1839. 

"In  the  year  [17S6]  Mr.  Wilberforce  dissuaded  a  relation,  who 
complained  that  in  her  place  of  residence  she  could  find  no  religious 
instruction  in  the  Church,  from  attending  at  the  meeting-house.  ^  Its 
individual  benefits ' — he  writes  in  answer  to  her  letter  of  inquiry — 
*■  are  7X0  cotnpensation  for  the  general  evils  of  Dissent.  The  increase 
of  Dissenters,  which  always  folloius  from  the  institution  of  unstccpled 
places  of  worship,  is  highly  injurious  to  the  interests  of  religion  in  the 
long run."^     Vol.  i.  p.  248. 

"  Mr.   Hughes   of  Baltersea   dined    with  us — dissenting   minister. 


THE    TRUE,    CATHOLIC    CHURCHMAN.  329 

"  But " — you  may  say  in  reply — "  I  am  so  well 
settled  in  my  principles  that  I  cannot  be  injured  by 
any  teaching  I  may  hear,  even  though  it  should  con- 
flict with  the  instructions  of  the  Church."  This  may 
indeed  be  the  case,  although  the  influence  which 
error  exerts  over  the  mind,  is  often  so  insensible  in 
its  progress  as  to  be  almost  unmarked  until  it  gains 
the  supremacy.  Yet  may  not  your  example  pro- 
duce an  effect  upon  others,  who  are  not  so  well  es- 
tablished ?  Suppose  that  the  Churchman  thinks 
there  is  but  little  harm  in  yielding  to  his  curiosity  to 
hear  a  nev/  voice,  and  visit  some  other  place  of  wor- 
ship ;  may  he  not  be  giving  a  lesson  of  irregularity 
to  numbers  around  him,  who  believe,  that  if  he  will 
do  so,  they  may  also  ?  If  he,  who  is  supposed  to 
understand  the  principles  and  regulations  of  his 
Church,  may  indulge  his  taste  for  novelty,  and  wan- 
der about  from  place  to  place,  his  weaker  brethren 
will  conclude  that  they  may  with  safety  follow  in  his 
footsteps.  Thus,  he  has  the  responsibility  of  counte- 
nancing what  he  knows  to  be  error,  and  of  spreading 
abroad  an  influence  which  may  keep  others  from  the 
means  of  grace,  or  from  listening,  as  they  should,  to 
the    calls  of  the  Gospel.     His  irregularity   furnishes 

He  is  a  sensible,  well  informed,  pious  man  ;  strongly  dissenting  in 
principle,  but  moderate  in  manner.  He  confessed,  not  one  in  twenty 
of  Doddridge'' s  pupils  but  -who  turned  either  Socinian,  or  tendi7ig  that 
way ;  (he  himself  strictly  orthodox  ;)  and  he  said  that  all  the  old 
Presbyterian  places  of  worship  were  become  Socinian  congregations.''^ 
Vol.  iii.  p.  24. 

"  L.  off  to  Birmingham  to  hear  [Robert]  Hall  preach  to-morrow.  I 
should  have  liked  it,  but  thought  it  wrong.  In  attending  public  wor- 
ship we  are  not  to  be  edified  by  talent,  but  by  the  Holy  Spirit,  and 
therefore  we  ought  to  look  beyond  the  human  agent."  Vol.  v.  p. 
140. 


330  THE    TRUE,    CATHOLIC    CHURCHMAN. 

them  v/ith  a  ready  argument  for  their  remissness  ; 
and  thus,  when  he  sometimes  wonders  at  seeing  the 
seats  around  him  untenanted,  were  the  truth  fully- 
known,  it  would  be  found  he  had  himself  aided  in 
producing  that  result.  Those  who  wish  not  well  to 
the  Church  can  quote  him  in  support  of  their  views, 
and  thus  his  moral  influence  is  enlisted  against  her 
cause.  Instead  of  quietly  and  silently  aiding  in  train- 
ing up  those  around  him  to  a  constant  and  devout 
attendance  on  her  services,  he  is  showing  them  that 
it  is  immaterial  where  they  go.  He  certainly  cannot 
be  said  to  be  "  steadfast,  unmovable,  always  abound- 
ing in  the  work  of  the  Lord." 

Again,  another  characteristic  of  the  true  Church- 
man is — that  he  regards  the  Church,  with  her  insti- 
tutions, as  the  grajid  instrnmetit  for  reforming  the 
world.  Look  abroad  over  society,  and  see  its  present 
state  of  feeling  with  respect  to  benevolent  enterprises. 
It  is  distinguished  for  outward  activity  and  bustle. 
The  followers  of  our  Master  seem  to  be  ever  engaged 
in  furbishing  up  their  armor,  and  in  preparing  to  take 
part  in  that  great  contest  which  is  waging  against  sin. 
But  we  think  it  will  be  evident  even  to  a  casual  ob- 
server, that  the  lofty  expectations  formed  are  not 
realized — that  the  result  is  sadly  disproportioned  to 
the  noise  made  in  the  conflict.  And  the  reason  of 
the  failure  is  equally  evident.  It  is  because  the 
strength  of  the  Christian  world  is  so  much  wasted  in 
visionary  schemes,  in  which  a  little  more  wisdom 
would  have  taught  it  never  to  engage.  There  is  a 
degree  of  ill-directed  earnestness  abroad,  which,  while 
it  produces  no  valuable  fruits,  at  the  same  time  pre- 
vents those  exertions  which  might  truly  aid  the  great 


THE    TRUE,    CATHOLIC    CHURCHMAN.  331 

cause  of  man's  redemption.  It  is  "a  zeal  of  God, 
but  not  according  to  knowledge,"  and  which  there- 
fore is  often  running  in  the  wrong  channel. 

And  even  when  the  object  is  a  good  one,  the  man- 
ner in  which  the  attempt  is  made,  is  often  such  as  to 
defeat  the  desired  end.  The  hurry  and  bustle  which 
mark  every  department  of  life,  have  been  transferred 
also  to  the  efforts  of  benevolence.  If  an  evil  is  to  be 
rectified,  instead  of  having  it  done  by  the  gradual 
progress  of  truth,  the  community  must  at  once  be 
wrought  up  into  a  fever.  The  entire  work  must  be 
immediately  accomplished.  Ingenuity  is  exhausted 
in  devising  new  and  human  means  of  triumphing 
over  sin.  A  mighty  machinery  is  set  in  motion. 
Men,  becoming  wiser  than  Scripture,  and  improving 
on  the  example  of  their  Lord,  forget  "  in  patience  to 
possess  their  souls,"  and  cannot  wait  for  great  princi- 
ples to  be  inculcated,  which  are  afterwards  slowly 
yet  surely  to  develop  their  influence. 

But  mark  the  result.  Behold  it  on  every  side  of 
us.  Thus  earnestly  laboring  without  any  guide  but 
their  own  zeal,  men  begin  to  take  distorted  views  of 
truth.  They  attempt  to  act  upon  the  prejudices 
of  those  around  them  by  questionable  motives  and 
arguments ;  for  in  their  eagerness  to  attain  the  end, 
they  forget  to  be  scrupulous  about  the  means.  In 
this  way,  no  matter  how  wild  a  scheme  may  be,  or 
how  evil  and  unhallowed  are  the  passions  which 
urge  it  on,  they  resort  to  the  Word  of  God,  that  its 
sanction  may  seem  to  be  given  to  their  excess. 
Thus,  Scripture  is  constantly  perverted  by  ignorance 
and  fanaticism  ;  and  the  holiest  subject — themes  of 
which    an    Apostle     could     not    speak    without   the 


332         THE    TRUE,    CATHOLIC    CHURCHMAN. 

deepest  reverence — are  flung  before  the  multitude,  to 
be  jeered  and  scoffed  at — to  be  fiercely  debated  by 
unhallowed  lips — until  every  association  of  sanctity 
is  lost,  and  the  sublime  mysteries  of  our  faith  are 
blasphemed  with  a  recklessness  which  might  make 
an  angel  weep.* 

The  limits  of  human  responsibility  also  seem  lately 
to  have  disappeared.  Few  are  contented  to  labor  in 
the  particular  spheres  in  which  Providence  has  placed 
them,  but  the  general  rule  of  conduct  is  that  every 
one  must  do  every  thing.  Even  woman,  whose 
brightest  ornament  is  that  of  "  a  meek  and  quiet 
spirit,"  must  step  forth  from  the  domestic  circle  which 
God  has  made  the  sphere  of  her  usefulness,  to  seek 
for  other  and  unauthorized  fields  of  labor.  Deserting 
the  bedside  of  the  sick,  and  the  lowly  habitation  of 
the  poor,  where,  when  she  came  in  her  gentleness  and 
meekness,  she  was  welcomed  as  a  ministering  angel, 
and  sacrificing  that  shrinking  delicacy  which  is  her 
most  beautiful  attribute,  she  must  lift  up  her  voice  as 
the  public  teacher,  or  else  gird  on  the  armor  of  the 
Reformer,  and  be  seen  in  the  arena  of  strife. 

The  natural  consequence  of  all  this  is,  that  a  spirit 
of  bitterness  is  engendered.  The  world  is  not  going 
to  be  driven,  and  some  who  under  different  measures 
might  have  been  the  advocates  of  these  objects,  are 
forced,  in  stemming  the  current,  to  oppose  them. 
Thus,  in  reality  the  great  cause  of  human  well-being 
suffers  by  the  ill-directed  zeal  and  ultraism  of  its 
friends. 

*  For  instance — the  discussions  on  the  subject  of  the  Holy  Com- 
munion, growing  out  of  the  agitation  of  the  Wine  Question  by  the 
Temperance  Society. 


THE    TRUE,    CATHOLIC    CHURCHMAN.  HZ 

Now  what  is  the  remedy  for  these  manifold  evils  ? 
I  answer,  without  hesitation,  it  is  to  return  to  the 
principles  inculcated  by  our  Lord,  The  same  forms 
of  sin  which  now  prevail,  were  in  the  world  when 
He  was  here,  and  yet  He  only  founded  His  Church 
as  the  corrective  for  all.  Here  is  the  authorized 
channel,  through  which  He  appointed  blessings  to  be 
conveyed  to  fallen  and  apostate  man.  He  endowed 
her  with  power  for  every  situation  in  which  she 
should  be  placed.  He  commissioned  her  to  be  a 
perpetual  witness  for  him  in  the  earth — ceaselessly 
by  her  voice  to  reprove  sin,  and  sustain  the  cause  of 
godliness.  She  takes  no  partial  view,  but  looks  over 
the  whole  field  of  human  misery,  and  in  a  spirit  of 
love  to  the  sufferer,  yet  with  the  voice  of  authority,  re- 
bukes the  demon,  of  whatever  kind  it  may  be,  and  bids 
the  victim  go  free. 

Do  you  wish,  then,  so  to  labor  that  you  may  dis- 
charge your  duty  to  your  God,  to  the  world,  and  to 
the  interests  of  suffering  humanity  ?  The  Church 
opens  to  you  unnumbered  paths  by  which  you  may 
attain  this  object ;  while  at  the  same  time  she  so 
guides  you,  that  your  zeal  cannot  but  be  directed 
aright.  For  instance,  are  your  sympathies  excited 
for  the  distant  heathen — for  the  thousands  in  your 
own  land  who  are  perishing  for  lack  of  knowledge — 
or  even  for  the  temporal  suffering  which  is  around  ? 
She  instructs  you  in  what  way  to  relieve  this  wretch- 
edness, or  else  herself  acts  as  the  almoner  of  your 
bounty.  While,  then,  we  are  bound  to  strive  for  the 
diffusion  of  truth  and  purity,  let  us  learn  to  "  strive 
lawfully."  Let  us  look  with  some  little  reverence  to 
the  experience  of  eighteen  centuries  which  have  pre- 


334  THE     TRUE,    CATHOLIC    CHURCHMAN. 

ceded  us,  and  not  imagine  that  light  has  now,  in  our 
day,  for  the  first  time  burst  upon  the  earth. 

Once  more,  then,  I  would  say  to  you,  in  the 
language  of  our  Lord  Himself — "hear  the  Church." 
Be  as  earnest  and  as  active  as  you  can  in  the  cause 
of  human  benevolence — do  all  in  your  power  to 
relieve  a  sinful  and  apostate  world — but  let  the 
Church  guide  you  as  to  the  manner  in  which  your 
efforts  are  to  be  directed.  Live  as  she  bids  you — 
pray  in  the  spirit  with  which  she  would  have  you — 
urge  on  the  holy  principles  of  the  Gospel  in  the  old 
way  which  she  points  out — and  you  need  not  fear 
being  wrong.  An  excited  world  may  revile  you,  but 
the  rule  is — "judge  nothing  before  the  time."  When 
the  day  of  requital  comes,  it  will  be  seen,  that  he 
acted  not  only  with  the  truest  wisdom,  but  also  with 
the  best  effect,  who  was  willing  to  be  an  humble 
follower  of  that  Church  to  which  his  Master  committed 
the  work  of  human  reform — for  which  He  shed  His 
blood — and  which  an  Apostle  has  called,  "  the  Church 
of  the  Living  God,  the  pillar  and  ground  of  the 
truth." 

One  other  characteristic  of  the  true  Churchman 
which  we  would  briefly  mention  is,  that  he  zvalks 
worthy  of  his  high  calling.  We  may  not  only  most 
accurately  understand,  but  also  fully  believe  all  that 
our  Lord  has  taught,  and  be  numbered  among  the 
members  of  His  Church  ;  yet  if  His  religion  has  not 
performed  its  appropriate  work  upon  our  hearts,  we 
shall  be  "as  sounding  brass,  or  a  tinkling  cymbal." 
To  receive  these  sublime  truths  into  the  intellect  will 
be  nothing,  unless  they  act  also  as  a  light  to  our  feet 
to  lead  us  on  in  the  way  of  holiness.     To  be  enrolled 


THE     TRUE,     CATHOLIC    CHURCHMAN.  335 

in  the  Church  on  earth  will  be  worse  than  useless,  if 
wc  do  not  imbibe  the  spirit  which  she  inculcates,  and 
thus  suffer  her  to  discipline  us  for  Heaven.  Our 
Master  designs,  that  by  her  constant  services  and  her 
solemn  lessons,  she  should  recall  us  from  this  fleeting 
world,  and  make  us  remember  what  we  are  and  what 
we  may  be.  Here  is  the  standing,  perpetual  testi- 
mony of  our  God,  to  train  us  up  to  be  the  children 
of  immortality.  Her  ordinances  must  be  to  us 
effectual  signs  of  grace,  not  mere  forms  and  shadows. 
We  must  be  temples  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  having  in 
our  faithful  hearts  the  shrine  which  the  Spirit  of 
Grace  may  inhabit.  The  true  Churchman,  who 
worthily  bears  that  holy  name,  will  be  ever  looking 
upward  to  the  Cross  as  his  source  of  safety  and 
strength,  and  onward  to  eternity  as  his  home  and 
abiding- place.  His  rehgion  must  be  "one  of  visible 
holiness  and  self-denial,  that  willingly  takes  on  itself 
the  sorrows  which  to  the  multitude  are  inevitable, 
and  enlightens  their  suffering  by  its  own  pain  and 
privation."  It  must  be  a  faith,  whose  aims  are  lofty 
— whose  efforts  are  untiring — and  whose  spirit  is 
evidently  that  which  our  Lord  would  inculcate,  when 
he  declared — "  Whosoever  will  lose  his  life  for  my 
sake,  shall  find  it."  It  is  such  that  the  Church  needs 
for  her  followers.  She  asks  not  for  those  who  are 
merely  fascinated  by  her  outward  beauty,  but  recog- 
nize not  her  sterner  features,  and  shrink  from  self- 
denial  in  her  cause.  She  wishes  not  those,  who 
delight  to  be  with  her  in  the  hour  of  glory  on  the 
Mount  of  Transfiguration,  declaring,  "  It  is  good  for 
us  to  be  here,"  but  leave  her  side  as  soon  as  she 
descends  to  the  conflicts  of  this  lower  world,  or  points 


336  THE    TRUE,    CATHOLIC    CHURCHMAN. 

to  the  Cross.  Far  different  is  the  standard  of 
devotedness  to  which  the  true  Churchman,  through 
God's  Holy  Spirit,  must  be  trained.  He  must  image 
forth  in  his  hfe,  the  beauty  of  the  faith  in  which  he 
trusts.  By  partaking  of  that  solemn  ordinance, 
which  is  provided  "  for  his  spiritual  food  and  suste- 
nance"— by  holy  employments — by  daily  benevolence 
— by  frequent  prayer — he  is  to  reveal  the  sacredness 
of  his  profession,  and  let  the  world  see  that 
he  is  indeed  a  member  of  the  Holy  Catholic 
Church. 

I  have  thus  concluded  a  consideration  of  the  topics, 
which  I  wished  to  bring  before  you  in  this  course  of 
Lectures.  For  ten  successive  Sunday  evenings  I 
have  addressed  you,  on  the  distinctive  features  of  the 
Church;  and  imperfectly  and  briefly  as  the  subject 
has  been  brought  forward,  I  still  trust  it  will  not  be 
without  its  fruits,  in  causing  you  to  understand  why 
you  are  Churchmen.  At  all  events,  if  only  the  spirit 
of  inquiry  is  excited,  it  is  all  we  ask.  We  court  in- 
vestigation, well  knowing  that  the  principles  on  which 
the  Church  is  based,  can  stand  the  test,  and  com- 
mend themselves  to  the  reason. 

And  now,  before  I  close,  let  me  ask  you  for  a 
moment  to  look  once  more  over  the  world  around  us. 
See  how  trouble  is  abroad — how  earnest  and  restless 
the  mind  of  man  has  become,  as  with  perfect  reckless- 
ness he  rushes  on  from  one  experiment  to  another. 
The  wisest  are  at  fault,  and  confess  themselves  unable 
to  interpret  the  signs  of  the  times,  or  to  prophesy 
whereunto  all  this  will  grow.  Even  the  religious 
feeling  of  man  is  ever  seeking  some  strange  form  in 
which  to  develope  itself,  and  each  year  gives  birth  to 


THE    TRUE,    CATHOLIC    CHURCHMAN.  337 

new    sects,    and    untried     ways   of    advancing    the 

truth.* 

The  scene  around  us  is  shifting  with  the  rapidity 
of  a  drama.  And  we  know  from  the  history  of  the 
past,  that  so  it  must  be,  and  these  new  creations 
which   are   thus   constantly   starting    into    existence, 

*  Bishop  De  Lancey,  in  a  note  to  his  sermon  preached  in  Boston, 
Jan.  1843,  at  the  consecration  of  the  Bishop  of  Massachusetts,  makes 
the  following  statement  : 

"  As  far  as  can  be  ascertained,  there  are  now  prevalent,  among  the 
leading  denominations  in  the  United  States,  as  independent  organiza- 
tions— 

Baptists.  Presbyterians. 

Calvinistic  Baptists,  Old-School  Presbyterians, 

Free-Will  Baptists,  New-School  Presbyterians, 

Free-communion  Baptists,  Cumberiand  Presbyterians, 

Seventh-day  Baptists,  Associate  Presbyterians, 

Six-principle  Baptists,  Dutch-Reformed  Presbyterians, 

Emancipation  Baptists,  Reformed  Presbyterians. 

Campbellite  Baptists. 

Methodists.  Congregationalists. 

Methodist-Episcopal,  Orthodox  Congregationalists, 

Protestant  Methodists,  Unitarian  Congregationalists, 

Primitive  Methodists,  Transcendental  Congregationalists, 

Wesleyan  Methodists,  Universalist  Congregationalists. 

Associate  Methodists, 

"No  Christian  man  can  contemplate  the  above  statement,  without 
feelings  of  sorrow.  No  Churchman  can  view  it  without  feelings  of 
humble  thankfulness,  that  the  Providence  of  God  has  thus  far  pre- 
served the  unity  of  the  Church,  and  overruled  the  occasional  excite- 
ments and  diversities  of  opinion  in  it,  to  the  prevention  of  any  disrup- 
tion, or  rending  of  the  body  of  Christ.  Among  the  thousand  evils, 
which  result  from  the  endless  subdivisions  of  Christian  men  into  inde- 
pendent organizations,  is  a  miserable  waste  of  ministerial  efficiency, 
and  augmented  expensiveness  in  sustaining  religion.  In  most  of  our 
villages,  one  half  the  Church  edifices  and  one  half  the  clergy  would 
supply  ample  accommodation  and  better  instruction  to  the  people,  at 
less  expense  to  them  and  with  increased  usefulness  to  the  clergy.  Is 
there  any  effectual  cure  for  this  waste  of  means,  energy  and  talent, 
but  a  return  to  the  'one  body  of  Christ?'  Surely,  Christian  men 
should  ponder  this  subject." 
22 


33^  THE    TRUE,    CATHOLIC    CHURCHMAN. 

must  live  out  their  brief  day,  and  then  pass  into 
nothingness.  They  contain  within  themselves  no 
elements  of  perpetuity.  Out  of  nearly  one  hundred 
sects  which  were  flourishing  in  the  days  of  Charles  I., 
and  whose  names  are  recorded  on  the  page  of  history, 
but  two  or  three  are  now  in  existence,  and  these  so 
altered,  that  they  could  not  at  present  be  recognized 
by  their  own  founders.  And  thus  it  is,  in  this  ever- 
changing  world,  that  the  Ecclesiastical  writer  of  the 
next  century  will  make  the  record  of  our  day. 

Is  there  then  nothing  fixed  and  stable  ?  Is  there 
no  City  of  Refuge  for  those  who  are  wearied  with  this 
strife  of  tongues  ?  Is  there  no  Holy  Ark  to  which 
the  Christian  may  flee  and  be  at  peace,  when  over 
the  broad  earth  he  finds  no  resting-place  for  the  sole 
of  his  feet  ?  Yes  —  it  is  in  the  ancient  Apostolic 
Church,  to  which  we  have  pointed  you.  Unaltered 
in  her  doctrine  and  ministry  for  eighteen  centuries, 
she  passes  calmly  and  quietly  on  her  way,  unaffected 
by  the  worldly  changes  around  her.  Other  religious 
bodies  endeavor  to  adapt  themselves  to  the  spirit  of 
the  times,  and  thus  are  drawn  into  the  current ;  but 
the  Church  does  not.  She  has  her  own  old  paths, 
and  goes  forward  unfalteringly,  whatever  the  world 
may  do.  Around  her  are  the  whirlwind  and  the 
storm,  and  the  multitude,  as  they  are  swept  along 
by  every  wind  of  doctrine,  at  times  look  up  to  her 
venerable  tovv^ers  and  deride  as  antiquated  her  time- 
honored  services.  But  within  her  fold — cut  off"  from 
all  this  excitement — her  children  are  quietly  training 
up  against  the  day  of  account,  until  one  by  one  they 
pass  from  her  courts  to  the  Paradise  of  God,  "  meet 
to  be  partakers  of  the  inheritance    of   the  saints  in 


THE    TRUE,    CATHOLIC    CHURCHMAN.         339 

light."  And  thus,  age  after  age,  she  alone  remains 
unaltered,  while  all  else  is  changing.  The  Romanist 
falls  off  on  one  side,*  and  the  Dissenter  on  the  other, 
but  she  simply  bears  her  DOUBLE  WITNESS  against 
them,  and  goes  on  as  of  old. 

Learn  then  to  prize  your  privileges  as  members  of 
this  Church,  and  live  up  to  your  high  responsibilities. 
The  conflict  which  she  calls  her  children  to  wage  is 
no  trifling  warfare,  but  "an  earnest,  endless  strife." 
It  is  in  self-denial,  and  toil,  and  often  in  suffering, 
that  she  bids  them  accomplish  their  work,  and  thus 
form  and  mature  those  elements  of  Christian  charac- 
ter, which  in  the  coming  world  can  alone  fit  them 
for  immortality.  Despise  not,  then,  her  instructions, 
for  they  are  the  words  of  holy  wisdom  which  her 

*  Palmer  gives  the  following  brief  account  of  the  beginning  of  the 
Roman  schism  in  England.  "  The  accession  of  the  illustrious  Queen 
Elizabeth  was  followed  by  the  restoration  of  the  Church  to  its  former 

state The  clergy  generally  approved  of  the  return  to  pure 

religion,  and  retained  their  benefices,  administering  the  sacraments 
and  rites  according  to  the  English  Ritual.  In  1562  the  Synod  or 
Convocation  of  England  published  a  formulary  of  doctrine,  divided 
into  39  articles,  in  which  the  doctrines  of  the  Catholic  faith  were 
briefly  stated,  and  various  errors  and  superstitions  of  the  Romanists 
and  others  were  rejected.  This  formulary  was  again  approved  by 
the  Convocation  in  1571,  and  ordered  to  be  subscribed  by  all  the 
clergy.  There  was  no  schism  for  many  years  in  England :  all  the 
people  worshipped  in  the  same  Churches,  and  acknowledged  the  same 
pastors.  .  .  At  last,  in  1569,  Pius  V.  issued  a  bull,  in  which  he  excom- 
municated Queen  Elizabeth  and  her  supporters,  absolved  her  subjects 
firom  their  oaths  of  allegiance,  and  bestowed  her  dominions  on  the 
King  of  Spain.  This  bull  caused  the  schism  in  England ;  for  the 
popish  party,  which  had  continued  in  communion  with  the  Church  of 
England  up  to  that  time,  during  the  eleven  past  years  of  Elizabeth's 
reign,  now  began  to  separate  themselves.  Bedingfield,  Cornwallis, 
and  Silyarde,  were  the  first  popish  recusants  ;  and  the  date  of  the 
Romanists  in  England,  as  a  distinct  sect  or  community,  may  be  fixed 
m  the  year  1570."     Church  History,  p.  163. 


340        THE   TRUE,    CATHOLIC    CHURCHMAN. 

Master  hath  taught.  Shrink  not  from  avowing  your 
allegiance,  alike  in  good  report  and  evil  report ;  for 
you  must  suffer  with  the  Church  here,  if  you  will 
reign  with  her  in  the  hour  of  her  triumph.  You  may 
be  misunderstood  and  misrepresented.  A  captious 
world  may  ridicule  your  adherence  to  the  old  customs 
of  generations  which  have  long  since  gone,  and  when 
arguments  are  wanting,  bestow  upon  you  an  oppro- 
brious name.  But  what  of  this  ?  Remember  the 
stirring  words  of  the  Martyr  Ignatius — "  Stand  like  a 
beaten  anvil.  Let  not  those  who  seem  to  be  worthy 
of  confidence,  and  teach  other  doctrine,  put  thee  to 
confusion.  It  is  a  part  of  a  great  Champion  to  be 
stricken  and  conquer.'"^  How  noble  this  destiny  ! 
"  To  be  stricken  and  conquer."  To  pass  through 
life  as  if  it  were  a  battle-field — ever  contending 
earnestly  for  the  truth — and  then,  when  death  comes, 
to  be  able  to  look  back,  and  feel  that  the  great  end 
is  attained,  that  the  principles  for  which  you  waged 
the  warfare  are  beginning  to  triumph  !  And  soon 
with  all  of  us  this  conflict  will  be  over.  Soon,  this 
fleeting  life  will  melt  away  into  eternity,  and  the 
contest  and  the  agonism  passed,  nothing  will  re- 
main but  the  victor's  reward.  Then,  the  spiritual 
and  the  heroic,  which  here  were  formed  in  the  breast 
by  suffering  and  toil,  shall  be  developed  in  their  own 
heavenly  shape,  and  brighter  than  the  poet's  dream 
shall  be  the  living  glory  in  which  they  are  arrayed. 
Wait,  therefore,  until  the  end.  Follow  in  the  foot- 
steps of  your  Master  and  His  Apostles,  leaving 
consequences  to  Him.     In  the  words  of  one  of  the 

*  Epis.  ad  Polycarp,  §  3. 


THE    TRUE,    CATHOLIC    CHURCHMAN.  341 

living  poets  of  our  Mother  Church   in   England,   I 
would  say  to  each  one  of  you, 

•'  Thy  part  is  simple.     Fearless  still  proclaim 
The  truth  to  men  who  loathe  her  very  name 
And  if  thy  night  be  dark— if  tempests  roll, 
Dread  as  the  visions  of  thy  boding  soul — 
Still,  in  thy  dimness,  watch,  and  fast,  and  pray  ; 
And  wait  the  Bridegroom's  call — the  burst  of  opening  day." 

Lyra  Apostolica. 


Lately  Published. 


THE 


CHURCH  OF  THE  APOSTLES. 

BY   THE 

RT.  REV.  WM.  INGRAHAM  KIP,  D.  D.,  LL.  D. 

Bishop  of  Calikornia. 


This  work  was  written  at  the  request  of  many  Churchftien, 
as  a  contitiuation  of  the  "  DOUBLE  WITNESS,"  on  a  higher 
plane.  It  is  a  picture  of  the  Primitive  Church  in  its  purity, 
tracing  it  until  infected  by  medicBval  errors. 

i2mo,  174  pages,  $1.25. 


THE  REV.  F.  W.  ROBERTSON'S 
SERMONS. 

NEW  EDITION.     WITH  PORTRAIT   ON   STEEL. 
Complete  in  one  volume,  large  12mo,  838  pages.     Cloth,  $2.00. 


"  When  Mr.  Robertson  died  his  name  was  scarcely  known  beyond 
the  circle  of  his  own  private  friends,  and  of  those  among  whom  he 
had  labored  in  his  calling.  Now  every  word  he  wrote  is  eagerly 
sought  for  and  affectionately  treasured  up,  and  meets  with  the  most 
reverent  and  admiring  welcome   from  men   of  all   parties   and   all 

shades  of  opinion To  those  that  find  in  his  writings 

what  they  themselves  want,  he  is  a  teacher  quite  beyond  comparison 
—  his  words  having  a  meaning,  his  thoughts  a  truth  and  depth,  which 
they  cannot  find  elsewhere.  And  they  never  look  to  him  in  vain. 
.  .  .  .  He  fixes  himself  upon  the  recollection  as  a  most  original 
and  profound  thinker,  and  as  a  man  in  whom  excellence  puts  on  a 
new  form There  are  many  persons,  and  the  number  in- 
creases every  year,  to  whom  Robertson's  writings  are  the  most  stable, 
satisfactory,  and  exhaustless  form  of  religious  teaching  which  the 
nineteenth  century  has  given  —  the  most  wise,  suggestive,  and  prac- 
tical."—  Saturday  Review. 

"Here  is  a  book  which  has  gone  through  as  great  a  number  of 

editions  as  the  most  popular  novel A  fine,  tender,  and 

lofty  mind,  full  of  thoughtfulness,  full  of  devotion,  has  herein  left  his 

legacy  to  his  country Save  for  the  charm  of  a  singularly 

pure  and  lucid  style,  their  almost  sole  attraction  consists  in  their 
power  of  instruction,  in  their  faculty  of  opening  up  the  mysteries  of 
life  and  truth."  —  Blackwood^ s  Magazine. 

.  "  The  Sermons  are  altogether  out  of  the  common  style.  They  are 
strong,  free,  and  beautiful  utterances  of  a  gifted  and  cultivated 
mind."  — Eclectic  Review. 

"  We  welcome  a  new  and  popular  edition  of  the  Sermons  of  Mr. 
Robertson.  He  was  a  preacher  of  rare  powers,  both  mental  and 
spiritual.  His  Sermons  have  produced  a  powerful  impression  on 
both  sides  the  ocean.  For  earnestness  of  purpose,  fervency  of  spirit, 
originality  of  thought,  depth  of  experimental  piety,  and  eloquence 
of  language,  we  know  not  where  to  look  for  superior  ones.  The 
character  of  the  man,  the  holy  enthusiasm  of  his  nature,  his  profound 
travail  of  soul  with  doubt,  and  temptation,  and  sorrow,  his  supreme 
devotion  to  his  high  calling,  and  his  exquisite  mental  and  moral  or- 
ganization, impart  an  indescribable  cbarm  and  a  rare  power  of  im- 
pression to  his  sermons.  We  are  not  surprised  that  thoughtful  minds 
find  a  fascination  in  them  which  they  cannot  resist."  —  Ain.  Presby- 
terian Review. 

*  Sent  by  mail,  postage  paid,  on  receipt  of  price. 

E.    P.   DUTTON   &  COMPANY,   Publishers,   New  York, 


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